The Fire Within
by ChocolateSyrup
Summary: Sequel to Eternal Flame. Po is suddenly faced with a difficult decision - keep his title as the Dragon Warrior or give up that title - but he may not have a choice.
1. Chapter 1

_Hey again, everyone! So yes, I've decided to do a sequel to Eternal Flame! This idea just wouldn't leave me alone and I was like "why not?" So I went with it! I just can't put KFP down yet, lol. Also to let you know, I've come up with new dividers for scene changes. I realized that the site eats the normal ones sometimes. So to be safe, I made my own! Hope you enjoy! =D_ _I suggest reading Eternal Flame first as well if you are new so things make sense :)_

xxxx

"We were trapped by Kai, but then this huge golden dragon came out of nowhere, like this! Grrr!" a little panda cub said in excitement as he held a brand new action figure in his paws, waving his arms. "But it was actually Po!"

The Dragon Warrior himself stood close by, unable to stop a smile from forming, as Bao told the story to a group of little, fluffy bunnies who turned their heads towards him with wide eyes. Some were fearful at the thought of a dragon, some were amazed. Others looked doubtful. It was show and tell at the school that Po had been assigned to teach at, and Bao was showing his action figure and sharing the story of how he had returned to the Mortal Realm as a dragon to defeat their enemy.

"That's impossible," one bunny piped up with an unbelieving gaze as she stared at Po. "He's still a panda."

Bao was about to come up with an explanation when he suddenly realized...he didn't have one. He looked from the bunny to Po, trying to come up with at least something. But his mind drew a blank. How _did_ Po go from being a panda to a dragon in the first place? He hadn't asked until now.

"Master Oogway sorta helped me out with that," Po explained as he moved to stand next to Bao in front of the class. It was a beautiful day outside with not a cloud in the sky—perfect for storytelling!

"Oooh," the bunnies chorused at the familiar name.

"But isn't he...dead?" Another little bunny couldn't help but ask. It was all so confusing! How could a panda turn into a dragon...and then _back_ into a panda?

"...Not exactly," Po decided to say, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck. "I don't exactly know how that works."

Oogway _did_ have the power to go from one realm to another, according to what Tigress had told him about the tortoise visiting. So didn't that mean Oogway was only half-dead? He didn't really want to think about that. The Spirit Realm was also bit of a touchy subject ever since Kai had first defeated him. "But _anyway..."_ he laughed nervously, inching away and giving the spotlight back to Bao. He didn't want the kids to get too wrapped up in _that_ subject. The bunny looked as if she wanted to say something more, but kept quiet.

"So then Po took Kai back to the Spirit Realm and turned back into a panda!" Bao finished excitedly. "And he's never coming back again." Thankfully the cub had left out the part where the dragon had gotten shot by an arrow, just barely managing to make it.

"Who _was_ this Kai person, anyway?" A gray bunny questioned. "I've never heard of him."

"Me either, but he sounds scary," another bunny added, looking as though he were about to faint. "I'm probably gonna have nightmares now..."

"Well, you don't have to worry about him ever again," Po reassured. He was surprised that none of the kids had ever heard of Kai, especially after his recent visit. But that didn't really matter. A bell suddenly rang, signaling that it was time for the bunnies to go on lunch break. Po had only been scheduled to teach until noon, and with Bao's help, the time had gone by quick.

"Alright little dumpling kicker, time to go," Po said fondly, ruffling the fur on Bao's head.

"Aww. Bye!"

Bao waved to the bunnies as they went back inside of the school to get their lunches. He turned to follow Po back to the Jade Palace—his new home. The little panda cub couldn't believe that Master Shifu had actually allowed him and his family to stay!

xxxx

Po took a deep breath, closing his eyes and appreciating that he was even able to do such a thing. It was a simple, every day act that most took for granted, but ever since he had lost his Chi to the evil spirit warrior, he cherished every moment that there was to cherish.

 _Especially_ as he served dinner—a helping of his father's newly created secret ingredient soup. The Furious Five sat around the table, a few other pandas joining in. There was Bao and Lei Lei, as well as Li as the giant panda helped his son serve.

First it was lunch and now supper...the day had gone by so fast!

"I think I finally got the hang of it," Li told the group in excitement as he and Po began handing out the bowls. Mr. Ping had even taken the rest of the night off from the shop to attend the historic moment; he'd given Li his secret ingredient just before Po had taken off to fight Kai as a dragon.

"Uh huh, this is great!" Monkey said with a forced grin as he took a spoon in his hands and dipped it into his soup, soon afterwards taking a sip. Mantis nodded just as forcibly in 'agreement.' Crane was able to cover a grimace with one of his wings.

Tigress smirked. "You should make more," she told Li. Viper would have facepalmed along with the others if she had hands, but instead she just settled for shaking her head.

Li smiled widely at Tigress's compliment, completely unaware of the others' reactions.

"Too bad Shifu couldn't come. He had some serious meditating to do," Po said as he took the last two bowls for himself and Bao.

But just before he was able to sit down, Lei Lei had suddenly started waddling towards the counter where the plates and bowls were kept. Tigress was about to get up and grab her when she accidentally knocked herself against the counter.

Po's eyes widened, realizing what was about to happen. Before he was even able to think, he concentrated hard on the falling plate, catching it just in time before it was able to hit Lei Lei.

But he hadn't even reached his arms out to stop it from falling, keeping hold on his own bowl of soup.

The plate floated in midair, leaving the group to stare on in shock and amazement. Lei Lei looked above her head, giggling when she saw the odd spectacle before her. She reached her arms up and grabbed the plate, taking it back to the dinner table.

Po gaped. He'd just done the one thing that he promised himself he would never do, something that Kai had done to hurt others when the spirit warrior had possessed his powers—it didn't matter if he'd used it on an inanimate object, something that couldn't get hurt.

He suddenly felt sick.

"I—I gotta go," he said quickly, putting his plate back on the counter as the Five watched his frantic expression.

Why was he so afraid?

But Tigress knew exactly what he was thinking and why he reacted the way he had, remembering their conversation at the noodle shop after he had woken up.

 _"You would never hurt me. You would never hurt anyone."_

"Po, wait!" Tigress called, reaching a hand out. But he was too quick, and by the time she had started moving to follow him, he was already gone.

"What about dinner?" Mr. Ping asked in confusion.


	2. Chapter 2

_Thanks for the reviews, follows and faves the first chapter! Sorry this one's so short, but it was necessary to get things moving ;)_

xxxx

Po found that he just wasn't hungry anymore, even though he had skipped one of the most important meals of his life—dinner.

But dinner didn't matter. Not after what he'd done before he had gotten a chance to eat. The image of the hovering plate just wouldn't leave his mind, and all the "what if" thoughts that came after. What if he had accidentally moved Lei Lei instead and _not_ the plate? Po was sure he would never forgive himself.

Sighing, he sat under the Peach Tree of Wisdom, trying to ignore his growling stomach and the peaches that could ease the pangs if he really wanted to have one or two; he knew that Master Oogway most likely wouldn't mind, but Shifu was an entirely different story altogether.

Besides his persistent hunger pangs, Po also noticed that the itching feeling was back—the feeling that something needed to be done, but he didn't know what that something was. Kai was defeated and trapped in his own prison that he'd created, and he had his Chi back. Was Master Oogway trying to tell him something, like he had tried to warn Shifu about Kai before he had arrived once again in the Mortal Realm?

"Is now a good time?" a voice asked, breaking the silence and pulling Po back to reality.

"Shifu! Aren't you supposed to be..."

"Meditating?" the red panda said with a slight, mischievous smirk as he held a glowing, orange lantern in one hand and his staff in the other.

"Aw come on, his soup's not _that_ bad," Po said in defense, realizing that Shifu had skipped dinner on purpose. He had _thought_ that his dad's soup was getting better, but apparently...

"Okay. Yeah. Maybe he does need some more work," the Dragon Warrior finally admitted. Shifu chuckled lightly as he joined Po underneath the tree, sitting next to the larger panda.

"They told you what happened, didn't they?" Po asked with a feeling that he already knew the answer to that question.

Shifu nodded and Po sighed once more, staring out at what seemed to be storm clouds gathering in the distance, which was strange. Hadn't it been nice and clear all day?

"What if I hurt someone? I don't think I could live with that," he said, knowing that he wouldn't be able to avoid talking about it any longer. "What if I end up hurting _you_ right now?" Po knew that Kai had used his power on the old master. Shifu hadn't been able to resist the yak's control over his body, and he had been forced to kneel at Kai's feet. Po was horrified and angry at the thought that his powers had been used for such an evil deed.

"You are too concerned with what was and what will be," Shifu replied with a soft smile as he recited the wise words of Master Oogway.

Po couldn't help but smile in return, remembering how Oogway had told him those same words under the same tree...it seemed like ages ago now.

"I keep forgetting that you are not a student anymore, but a teacher," Shifu continued, the night wind ruffling his white fur. "And with great power, comes great responsibility. But I have trust in you as I did my master."

Po glanced down at his paws, remembering Tigress's words to him at the shop.

 _I trust you. We all trust you._

Shifu watched the panda's actions with a forlorn smile. "Oogway would not have chosen you as his successor if he as well did not have trust in the Dragon Warrior," he attempted to reassure Po.

That only made things worse. Everyone trusted him and counted on him, yet he barely trusted himself as he tried his best to come to terms with the new power he now possessed. One little thing could go wrong and he would _lose_ everyone's trust in the blink of an eye.

"Anything is possible when you have inner peace," Shifu reminded Po calmly.

The Dragon Warrior looked from his paws to Shifu's lantern, gazing directly into the glowing light.

The lantern began to shake, and Po had a bad feeling that it wasn't because of the wind that had started to pick up.

"You shouldn't be here..." he said slowly, his eyes starting to water and hoping that Shifu wouldn't take it the wrong way. _Maybe I shouldn't be here._ At least until he got his powers under control.

Shifu's ears twitched in shock at Po's words, but he understood.

"Come back when you are ready...but I advise that it be soon. A storm appears to be brewing," he said, pointing his staff outwards at the billowing clouds that Po had seen earlier. They were moving in the direction of the peach tree.

When Po looked back, Shifu was already gone.

Thunder suddenly cracked and rumbled, and before Po knew what was happening, it had started to pour down rain, leaving his fur soaked.

Great.


	3. Chapter 3

He still had so many questions that he hadn't had a chance to ponder up on the hill before the storm hit, or before Shifu came to check on him. He didn't want to go back to the palace yet. He didn't want to risk hurting anyone, but he knew that he had to go back or his master would probably give him extra training hours.

He was a Spirit Warrior like Kai now, right? So didn't that mean he was immortal, too? The arrow that Kai had shot into his chest hadn't killed him. He didn't know if that was because of his family's Chi as they desperately tried to save him, or if it had just _hurt_ and he wouldn't have died at all, like he knew that Kai wouldn't die when he had thrown him down the Jade Palace steps. He had no idea how immortality worked! The thought of living past his friends and family didn't sit well with him—he wasn't keen on finding out, and he wasn't about to wish for Kai himself to come back and explain everything to him about what being a Spirit Warrior was like.

He was almost to the Jade Palace when a sharp pain suddenly caught him off guard, preventing him from asking any further questions. The pain had come from his side, exactly where Kai had slashed him with one of his swords.

But wait a minute...hadn't his wounds finally healed? It had only been a few weeks, but Po hadn't felt any pain in his chest or side for awhile now. He could be hugged and squeezed freely, unlike when he'd first woken up after his final fight with Kai. A second pain jabbed him in his chest where he had been shot with the arrow, and he found himself falling to the wet and muddy ground.

Everything went black and he knew no more.

xxxx

Tigress would never admit it out loud, but she was worried.

She was worried about Po. He had just gotten his Chi back, but along with that Chi came a brand new power. She wondered, however, if it was actually a new power at all or if he had always had it and just never knew. She decided on the latter; Kai had simply revealed that power for him. The thing that unnerved her the most was the fact that Kai had gotten a handle on it so soon, and Po was just learning how to use it—and having a hard time going about that.

Thunder rumbled outside the Jade Palace, and Tigress was thankful for the warmth and comfort that their home provided, a home that she, the rest of the Five and Shifu now shared with numerous other pandas. They had all been so ecstatic when her master had given them an official yes that they could stay, and again, though Tigress would never admit it out loud, she was happy too that little Lei Lei was allowed to stay; she didn't know what she would have done if she'd had to say a heartbreaking goodbye.

"Have you seen Po?" Tigress asked Viper when the snake slithered by her room. She shook her head, eyes full of concern.

"I haven't seen him since dinner."

Tigress frowned. Dinner had been hours ago and like Viper, she hadn't seen the panda since. Master Shifu had told them that he went to go talk with him under the Peach Tree of Wisdom, but ever since then he hadn't been seen by anyone.

 _Where are you, Po?_ she thought, wracking her brain to try and come up with ideas as to where he might have gone. The kitchen was the most obvious, but then again...it seemed as if he didn't want to be found, and if he didn't want to be found, then he most likely wouldn't go to the one place where everyone would expect him to be. Li and Mr. Ping didn't even know that their son was missing yet, and she wasn't sure if she had a reason to be _too_ concerned yet; Po had probably just lost track of time.

"Maybe he just needs some time alone," Viper suggested. "He looked pretty freaked out over what happened." The image of the floating plate crossed her mind. If she was being honest with herself, _she_ had been pretty freaked out, as well. But she wasn't afraid of Po! He was her friend and he would never hurt her! Why _would_ she be afraid? It was just his new power that needed some time getting used to. He could make things move with his mind...and apparently people, too. But she knew that he would never even _think_ of using it on his friends and family.

Tigress noticed something off, that Viper was suddenly lost in thought. "You're afraid, aren't you?" she couldn't help but ask. She had to know.

"I'm not afraid of Po. It's just..." Viper began, trailing off when she couldn't seem to finish her sentence. She really didn't have a clue why she was so afraid. It was Po's new power that left her a little nervous, of course, but...she just needed time to think, like Po probably needed time alone.

Tigress nodded in understanding. "I know...it is a little strange, but Po would never hurt us."

"I know," Viper confirmed. She was being silly. This was Po they were talking about! There was _nothing_ to be afraid of. Kai, on the other hand...he was an entirely different story. But Kai was gone and he was never coming back.

Po _wasn't_ Kai. Tigress told herself that she didn't need a reminder.

The two stood together in the dark hallway of the Jade Palace, glancing towards Po's room; he wasn't inside. He hadn't been there since dinner—he hadn't been _anywhere_ since dinner, and that only worried Tigress further.

Where _was_ he?

But Tigress told herself to stop worrying. Shifu had told him to come back when he was ready, and apparently he wasn't ready yet. Where he could be in this kind of weather, she had no idea. She told herself once more to stop worrying and let Po make his own decisions, just as she had when he was deciding if he wanted to stay in the Panda Village or go back to the Valley of Peace when Shifu had asked him to make that decision. She had told Po to do what he felt was right, and he had. Now their family was that much bigger and happier, but there was only one thing missing—Po himself.

Still, she told herself to stop worrying. He would be back by morning.

Lightning flashed, illuminating the dark hallway.

xxxx

"Hey, guys...you should come see this," Monkey said when he entered the palace halls the next morning. His eyes were wide and he looked shaken up as though he'd just seen a ghost.

"What is it?" Tigress questioned, an uneasy feeling sweeping through her as she followed Monkey outside the palace. Po still hadn't been seen anywhere, and she was beginning to think that it was a good time to start a search party. He hadn't told anyone anything, and had simply just disappeared like he had when he took Kai back to the Spirit Realm by using his staff. He would usually be awake by now and ready to start his training, despite having been taught by Li that pandas slept past noon.

The rain had stopped that morning, but it was still overcast. An earthly kind of smell reached the tiger's nose and she looked out over the fog that had formed above the Jade Palace steps, almost making it look like they were standing on the sky itself.

Monkey led them to the side of the palace where they found Crane and Mantis standing stock-still and looking up at the wall. Viper stood next to Tigress, her own eyes widening in shock when she saw what they had been staring at so intently.

She herself stared as the fog cleared to reveal something that she hadn't been expecting at all, and something that brought her back to the day when Kai had destroyed everything around her and had taken her friends' Chi while she could only watch helplessly from the sidelines.

And stared.

They all stared, unsure of what to make of the sight before them.

There were huge claw marks that scraped along the palace walls.


	4. Chapter 4

"What do you think it was, Master?" Tigress asked as she walked with Shifu through the palace. He had a look on his face that clearly meant he was in deep thought, concentrating and trying to figure out what might have done such a thing to their home.

"I don't know," he answered Tigress honestly, stopping when they finally reached the claw marks again. Once his students had told him of the incident, he tried going back a few days in his mind to see if he'd had headaches—the dreaded headaches that Oogway had given him to warn them of Kai's second arrival with Po's Chi, and what he was sure would be another warning that someone (or some _thing_ ) was going to be a threat. But he came up with nothing; there were no warnings at all.

"Do you think we need to evacuate the palace?" Crane asked, continuing to stare at the marks that went all across the walls. He shivered, and it wasn't because of the cold. Wind had started to pick up again, ruffling his newly healed feathers.

He stood next to Bao, keeping the little cub close. Bao stared at the marks on the wall, not at all fazed by the sight. He wanted to try and touch it, but Crane held him back. Ever since he had been healed by Bao's Chi, the bird had wanted to make sure that no harm came to his new friend. The sight before them left him feeling very unsettled. What could have done such a thing?

"I don't think there's a reason to be worried yet," Shifu mused as he inspected the wall. The claw marks were big. Whatever it was that had caused such a thing had left the rest of the palace alone, leaving its inhabitants unharmed. It was most likely just a fluke, or something that the 'creature' hadn't been able to control. "But we should do a search of the area to make sure that whatever caused this is gone...and won't be back. If this happens again, then an evacuation is indeed a possibility."

Shifu pointed his staff outwards over the stairs. "Split up and see if you can find anything, but be alert. We don't know what we're up against."

"Master, what about Po?" Tigress asked. He hadn't been seen since last night, and that was during a bad storm. Who knew what could have happened to the panda overnight? Her heart thudded against her chest, worry beginning to pull her under again. Why was he doing this to them? To her? He should have been back by now!

"Your primary objective is to find whatever caused this," Shifu said, glancing at the claw marks. He inwardly shivered, images of Tai Lung flashing across his mind. The damage was very similar to what the leopard was capable of causing, only _bigger._ Maybe they _did_ have a reason to be worried, but he didn't want to cause panic among the other pandas. "But you may also be on the lookout for the panda. I told him to come back to the palace when he was ready, but I haven't seen him since last night." He would do a bit of searching himself around the palace while the Five searched the rest of the Valley.

The Furious Five nodded, each going their separate ways to try and find whoever (or _what_ ever) had caused the marks.

xxxx

Crane soared through the air, making his way towards the forest. It was a nice day out again, and he intended to make the most of it after being inside the palace for so long. First it was Kai that had trapped him inside, and then it was a bad storm. Weather had been really weird the past few days as well. First it had been bright and sunny when Bao and Po were teaching the bunny class, and then storming rain that same night. What was going on?

But he pushed weather to the back of his mind, keeping on the lookout for anything peculiar in the Valley of Peace. So far he hadn't seen anything unusual, or something that might have caused the marks on the wall, but he was doing his best to find _some_ kind of clue—he didn't want to go back empty-handed.

He wasn't far from the palace when he suddenly spotted a shape down below. A _big_ shape. Trees surrounding it were crushed and broken, and a damaged trail that led to the shape itself. He couldn't exactly make out what such a shape could be from this high up, so he made a gentle landing on the ground.

Heavy breathing could be heard from behind a group of trees. Crane gulped, suddenly wishing that Mantis or one of the other Five had come along with him. He inched slowly in the direction of the sound, air ruffling his feathers once again as the larger creature breathed in and out.

Crane's beak dropped in shock and he instantly rushed back towards the palace.

xxxx

"I found Po!" Crane exclaimed as he reached the Jade Palace, landing at the entrance next to the steps. The Furious Five had all returned with nothing, and Shifu as well. There was nothing that could be found that had been related to the wall. Po hadn't been found by anyone except Crane.

Tigress's eyes lit up at his exclamation, but she frowned when she noticed his frantic expression. "Where?"

"He's not exactly himself..." Crane trailed off, watching as the others made their way towards him.

"What do you mean?" Tigress asked, her heart beginning to pick up once again.

Something was wrong.

"Just follow me!"

xxxx

A huge creature met her gaze and her eyes widened at the sight.

It was a golden creature with green eyes, and it was lying on top of a broken, fallen tree. Mud was splattered over its shiny scales and it looked like it was absolutely exhausted, breathing heavily.

It didn't seem hurt, just tired...like it had been struggling.

Tigress continued to stare at its eyes, those bright green eyes that didn't seem to take notice of her yet, eyes that were just slits and barely open.

She knew those eyes anywhere.

He had been missing since the night before, and when he'd first disappeared, that was when they had first seen the claw marks.

Everything was instantly piecing together in her mind.

It was Po.

The panda had somehow turned back into a dragon.


	5. Chapter 5

"Po?" Tigress asked carefully as she continued to stand in front of the gigantic dragon. He still hadn't woken, but his breathing had begun to slow down and go back to its normal pace. Whatever was normal for a dragon, at least.

Po didn't respond, his eyes still half shut. Tigress reached a hand out to rest on his nose. Before it could be firmly placed, the dragon let out a snort and suddenly made a move to get up without warning. Tigress hardly flinched, but she took a few steps back along with the others to avoid being crushed by accident.

Blinking wearily, Po tried his best to sit up. He was still sore from whatever had happened to him the night before, which was most likely a painful and unexpected transformation. His legs shook, but he was able to bring himself up off of the fallen tree beneath him, the leaves shaking as they were freed from his tremendous weight.

He let out what sounded like something between a whine and a growl as he looked back at Shifu and the Furious Five and attempted to speak. It took them a minute to remember that during the time Po had been a dragon his first time, he hadn't been able to talk. Apparently that was the case now, as well.

"...Po?" Tigress asked again. The dragon glanced at her in response to his name.

 _Why am I a dragon again?_ he thought frantically, his heart pounding as he looked about at the damaged forest and crushed, split trees. _Did I do that?_

"Are you hurt?" Tigress asked, just to be sure.

Po shook his head. _Are you?_ he mentally asked, head tilting to the side. He could have done anything to them! But Tigress didn't seem harmed at all in any way. She wasn't even scared of him, just appearing as worried as he that he had somehow changed into a dragon once again.

He glanced down at his body with a frown and couldn't help but ask one question: _why?_

"Can you remember what happened?" Shifu tried from his position next to the tiger.

Another head shake. Tigress sighed with relief in the back of her mind—so he had no idea what happened to the Jade Palace...that meant he hadn't done damage to the wall on purpose. She couldn't believe that she ever thought he _would_ whether it was on purpose or not. He wouldn't do that of his own free will. There was something wrong, something just as big as the dragon itself that was going on.

She took a step forward.

Po suddenly growled, warning her not to come any closer. Tigress instantly stopped, shocked. The others stood in place, just as shocked as Tigress at the sudden change in his behavior.

"Po...I just want to help," she said in an attempt to calm her friend down.

He was tired. He was frustrated. She could see it in his expression that he was scared, confused as to why he had once again been turned into a dragon.

She took another step forward.

Po backed away, letting out another warning growl.

"Tigress," Shifu said slowly and calmly so as not to further spook the dragon.

The others remained in place, eyes wide as they looked on. Viper glanced about at the damage that had been done to the trees around them.

 _I don't want to hurt you,_ Po thought mournfully as he watched Viper's reaction, his heart racing even quicker. He could easily crush them like he had crushed the trees. He had to get himself to calm down, but his pounding heart just wouldn't slow down.

 _Inner peace...inner peace..._ Po told himself. Maybe if he could get himself to calm down, he would change back. But even inner peace wasn't working. It was like it had just been stripped away from him and he had never gained inner peace at all.

The question _why_ came rushing back. Why was he a dragon again? _How_ had he changed back in the first place? Was there something going on? Po recalled the itchy feeling that had gone over him at the peach tree, the feeling that something had to be done. But what? Or had it just been the start of his transformation? ...Was it Master Oogway's doing? Po doubted that the tortoise would change him back into a dragon just for the heck of it. There had to be a reason! ...But _what?_ All of these questions were driving him insane and he couldn't take it, letting out an irritated rumble. He couldn't risk hurting any of them. He had to get out of the Valley of Peace and go somewhere far, a place where there wasn't anyone he could hurt by accident.

Tigress attempted to inch closer to him once more. She started to speak, but anger flashed across Po's face. _Stay away,_ he thought desperately, his eyes flashing as he quickly took hold of her outstretched paw with a simple thought and wrenched it backwards so that it couldn't touch him.

Everyone stood in place. The silence was near deafening and if a pin had been dropped, it most likely would have shattered their ears. The Furious Five gawked at what had just occurred, and Po could see them stepping back as if they were afraid of him. They _were_ afraid of him, nearly as much as he was afraid of himself.

Tigress held her paw. It hadn't hurt—it was incapable of feeling. The only time she had ever had feeling in her paw since punching the iron wood trees was when Po had squeezed it after waking up in his room, and that had to have simply been her imagination. She'd been so _happy_ that Po was back, that he wasn't dead. In the back of her mind, she was aware that storm clouds were beginning to gather again from above, and a light sprinkle of rain had started.

But she was just as shocked as everyone else, if not more so. She looked back up at Po, but he wouldn't meet her gaze. He couldn't. A flicker of an idea crossed his mind. He glanced up at the sky instead, and Tigress's eyes widened as she realized what he was going to do.

 _I can't stay here,_ Po thought as he continued staring, his idea forming more solidly. He had to get away.

"Wait!" Tigress shouted as Po hurriedly took to the sky without so much as looking back, her mind swirling in confusion at the fact that Po had just taken off into the sky and was _flying._ As a panda, he couldn't fly. But as a dragon, he had the power to soar through the clouds to his heart's content.

The storm clouds cleared and the rain stopped, but there were still dark clouds moving in the direction that Po had taken off.

Tigress turned back to Shifu and the Five. "I'm going after him," she told them firmly.

"But Tigress, he just used his powers on you!" Viper objected. This had been _exactly_ what she'd been afraid of, and what they had talked about in the hallway before going to bed the night before.

"That wasn't him," Tigress countered. "He wasn't himself..." she wasn't sure whether she was trying to convince the Five more, or her own doubts that were starting to circle in her head. "He didn't even remember scratching the palace. Something is going on and I'm not going to let anything happen to him."

"You don't even know where he went!" Crane pointed out.

But Tigress had a faint idea of where he might have gone. He was going to a place where there wasn't anyone he could harm, a place that had been empty for the last few weeks since Shifu had allowed the pandas to stay.

"I have an idea where he might have gone," she finally said aloud.

"I'll stay and look after the pandas," Shifu said after a few heartbeats of silence. "Anyone who wishes to join Tigress may do so. But I must remind you all to stay alert, and this time...stay together."

The Furious Five nodded. They looked from Shifu to Tigress. She stood in place, waiting for them to give their answer.

It was one she hadn't been expecting, but a small smile spread when they answered at last.

"Po is our friend and we won't let anything happen to him, either. We're coming, too."


	6. Chapter 6

Po breathed a sigh of relief once he had finally reached his destination. A completely empty destination where there was no one he could hurt.

He couldn't believe it. He'd just used his powers on someone, just like he was afraid of—and _Tigress_ of all people! Why?

The secret Panda Village was the one place he could think of that was totally empty ever since Shifu had allowed his family to stay at the Jade Palace. He felt really bad for just taking off without telling the others where he was going, _especially_ his dads; they didn't even have a clue that he'd been turned into a dragon again! But Po figured that it was for the best...they would probably freak out, anyway.

But he _had_ to leave. He had to get his powers under control and until then, he was going to stay in the deserted village.

Now that he was away from everyone else and had time to think, Po finally noticed a growl that was emitting from his stomach. Now that he thought about it, he _was_ feeling a little hungry. What did dragons eat, anyway? Most likely not dumplings and noodles. He shuddered, pushing the need for food to the back of his mind. He would figure that out later if he wasn't back to normal yet, which he hoped he was. This whole situation had him entirely confused.

Sighing again as he made his way to the village entrance, Po glanced up towards the sky that had darkened once more with storm clouds. Weird...it was like bad weather, or just plain bad _luck_ was following him wherever he went. But like food, he pushed that thought to the back of his mind; he had more important things to worry about than bad weather.

A chilly breeze blew past and soothed his aching body as he finally entered the village. As a panda, he would have had to use the non-stair route like his dad had shown him upon his first arrival, being lifted up to the mountain. Now that he was a dragon again with the exhilarating ability to fly, he could skip that entrance altogether and take himself up the mountain, no stairs or lift required. Which was really awesome, he had to admit, and one of the things he loved most about being a dragon. He figured he should take advantage of that while he had the chance.

But before he even had a chance to clear his head, Po could hear voices from down below the mountain. Not long after, the Five themselves were spotted.

 _No, no, no! What are they doing here?! Did they follow me?_ Even amidst his panicking thoughts, Po knew that he had to find somewhere to hide. But how could you hide a massive dragon in a village where there weren't that many places to hide, unless you were a panda? He couldn't camouflage like he had in the Spirit Realm. There wasn't anything gold! Thinking fast, he found a tall group of trees. It was a long shot in terms of concealment, but there wasn't much of a choice.

"I can still see you, Po," Tigress deadpanned as she led the others into the village. "We're going to help whether you want us to or not. So just come out."

"Yeah, you can't get rid of us that easy!" Monkey said in agreement.

Po huffed, emerging at last from the trees. So much for a good hiding spot. _What are you guys doing here?_ he wanted to ask, but only managing to blink at the group. He plopped himself onto the grass in a sitting position.

"What Tigress said," Mantis explained, "we're helping whether you want us to or not."

"We're going to get you back to normal," Viper chimed in as she slithered next to Crane. Tigress was by his side, carrying a pack full of food that Po couldn't help but stare at. The more he thought about food, the more hungry he became. But he had to remind himself that he was currently a dragon, and he had no idea what dragons ate. He didn't want to find out. Shaking his head, he turned his attention back to Tigress. She had a determined look on her face, like they were going to accomplish their goal overnight. As much as he wanted to go back to being a panda, Po doubted that such a thing would happen.

"I think we should try and talk to Master Oogway," she said immediately once she had Po's attention. She'd had the chance to mull over their odd predicament, and the only possible solution that she had come up with was to contact Master Oogway.

 _How? I left my staff..._ Po thought, suddenly realizing that he hadn't really packed _any_ of his things before going on his unexpected journey. He'd just _had_ to get away from everyone, and fast before he hurt them...

His thought trailed off when Tigress pulled out said staff as if she'd read his mind. Luckily, she had thought things through. Maybe Master Oogway really _could_ help...

Po expected her to hand it over to him so that he could use it to get to the Spirit Realm, but she kept a firm grip.

"I'm going with you," she said, like it was already decided.

Po shook his head rapidly in disagreement. _Are you crazy?_ he thought, shocked that she would even think of doing such a thing. For one, he was still recovering from the fact that he'd used his powers on her, something that he promised himself he would never do.

"You didn't hurt me, Po," she said soothingly, holding out her paw so that he could see there were no marks or bruises of any kind. He bent his head down cautiously, gently sniffing the center of her hand. Sure enough, it was exactly like she said. "I know you were just trying to protect me...so hardcore I can't feel anything, remember?"

He blinked once, then nodded slowly as he remembered their conversation on the way to Gongmen City. Truth be told, he actually couldn't remember much of when he had lashed out at her, it had all happened so fast. The only thing he knew was that he had been trying to protect everyone, especially Tigress.

But besides his constant worry of hurting her, she knew that if she went with him to see Master Oogway, she'd have to...

"Uh, Tigress, you know you'd sorta have to... _fly,_ right?" Crane said uncertainly.

"So?" she shot back.

"A flying tiger...now I've seen everything," Mantis snickered from atop Crane's hat, highly amused by just the thought alone. It was weird enough that a panda had turned into a dragon and could fly...but now a tiger was going to _ride_ said dragon?

"Yeah," Monkey chuckled. "Maybe you guys can race each other!"

Po frowned. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt people, especially his friends. But this time was an exception, lightly flicking him with his tail. Monkey fell backwards, knocking into Crane. The two fell to the ground in a heap, Mantis shooting Po a glare as he was tipped over.

"Thank you for nothing, you useless reptile," the smaller warrior quipped in return. Monkey only glared, but then laughed and shrugged it off. This was going to be interesting...

Po rolled his eyes but bent down anyway so that Tigress could climb aboard. He knew that there was no arguing with her. Once her mind was set on something, that was that and there were no questions asked. He looked back up to the stormy sky, realizing that it would be her first time to the Spirit Realm. Who knew what she would think or what would happen?

 _You sure you want to do this?_ he tried asking by turning his head towards Tigress as he prepared himself to launch himself off the ground. The only thing she could hang onto was his neck, and he doubted that it was very comfortable. She nodded in response to his supposed question.

"I'm ready."

"Looks pretty bad up there," Viper commented as she looked up at the sky herself. "Be careful..."

"We'll be back as soon as we can," Tigress assured the group as they started to back up so that Po had enough room. She continued to hold his staff firmly in her hand so as not to drop it once he took off. "Stay safe and find shelter in the village if the storm gets worse."

The Furious Five nodded, gathering up their belongings and getting ready to follow their instructions.

Po glanced back up at the stormy sky one last time before bending down to rocket himself off the ground.

His staff in Tigress's hand glowed brighter and brighter in the darkness until finally—just like the time when he'd taken Kai back to the Spirit Realm—both the tiger and dragon disappeared into thin air.


	7. Chapter 7

Po hadn't been sure what to expect when he and Tigress crossed the threshold between realms. He'd never brought anyone with him before from the mortal world, and he was a little nervous about what the outcome would be. What if something happened or it didn't work? Was he supposed to be holding his staff, or was the universe okay with someone other than the Dragon Warrior hanging onto it for the time being?

He could have held it in between his teeth, but he didn't want to risk snapping it in half again. Sure, he had held it in his mouth when he took Kai back to the Spirit Realm, but he was much more comfortable with someone else that he trusted holding onto it for him.

Po couldn't help but close his eyes with little more to do than hope for the best. He was (literally) the Dragon Warrior, and he _should_ be able to bring anyone he wanted back and forth as he pleased.

When his eyes finally opened, there was gold swirling all around and different islands that dotted the ever-changing landscape.

Yes, it worked! But what about Tigress?

 _You okay up there?_ he tried asking with a rumble as he hovered through the realm with his tail swishing gently back and forth in the air.

"I'm fine," she answered as though she had heard his thoughts.

Wait. Had she just heard the dragon's voice...in her _head?_ It sounded like Po's normal voice when he had been a panda.

"Say something else," she urged just to be sure.

 _Uhh...pandas rule and tigers drool,_ Po responded.

"...Really?"

 _This is so cool!_ Po exclaimed in his mind.

"A little strange...but definitely cool," Tigress finally admitted.

 _Maybe this only works in the Spirit Realm,_ Po mused as he continued flying forward.

"I think so," Tigress replied as if they were simply having a normal conversation.

 _Can you like...read my mind?_ Po had to ask, curiosity getting the better of him. _What am I thinking about right now?_

"...Noodles," Tigress guessed without even thinking. Truth be told, she couldn't _really_ read his mind; she'd just decided to humor the panda-turned-dragon.

 _Woah! This is seriously too awesome for words. But it **is** kinda freaky._

"I can't read your mind, Po," Tigress said plainly, deciding to be truthful. It was fun while it lasted, she had to admit. "I can only hear what you say in my head."

 _...Oh._ She knew him too well.

The two floated through the Spirit Realm quietly, Tigress keeping a firm hold on Po's staff. She had begun to float off of his back, and had to settle with flying next to the dragon as though she were running in midair on all fours, but at a slower pace. She could see his golden face and he glanced back at her, green eyes blinking with a bright smile.

 _This place is pretty neat, right?_

"Yes," Tigress agreed as she looked on at her surroundings. It was a mix of green and gold, but mostly gold. Not so much that she couldn't see Po, which was a relief. "Do you know where Master Oogway is?"

 _He usually finds me first,_ Po said in response. _But it looks like he's not really expecting us._

"What do you mean?" Tigress asked.

 _I think he would've found us by now, but..._

His thought trailed off in the tiger's mind, which was odd. It was like he had wanted to say something more, but decided against it.

"...Po?"

His eyes suddenly flashed from green to black, and it was then that Tigress knew for sure something was wrong.

She had to leap out of the way when he snapped at her without warning.

"Po!" she cried in shock, landing atop a floating rock. He snarled and charged at her. It was happening too fast and she barely had time to react to his oncoming attack. But before she could even close her eyes, a figure suddenly dropped in front of the dragon, landing between him and Tigress on the rock. It lifted an arm, holding another staff. A staff that appeared to be bigger than the Dragon Warrior's. A golden light appeared from the staff's tip and flew forward, directly hitting its desired target.

The dragon screeched in surprise, tumbling backwards and struggling to break free from his attacker's bind.

"Master, what's happening?" Tigress asked Oogway desperately when he came into her view, hoping that she would get an answer before Po managed to break free from his nerve attack.

The tortoise looked absolutely panicked, a look which rarely made itself known on Oogway's features. Tigress's heart pounded roughly against her chest and she gripped Po's staff even tighter.

"If he does not change back within three days—"

Too late. Po was far too strong, pulling himself out of it before Oogway could finish his sentence.

The Dragon Warrior slammed directly into him and the older master reeled backwards, Tigress just barely managing to catch him in her arms before he could go soaring through the realm. Oogway panted sharply, the wind knocked out of him from the sheer force of Po's strength. The staff in Tigress's hand dropped to the rock but before she could retrieve it, Po had other ideas.

Alarm swept through her and she feared that he would go for his own staff. But he went for Oogway's instead. Tigress attempted to perform a Chi attack with one hand, but Po was too fast. He grabbed the staff from Oogway's hold while the tortoise was still stunned from the blow, snapping it in half with his teeth.

The broken pieces fell to the ground and Tigress blanched in utter shock and horror, her grip on Oogway tightening protectively. But the tortoise, with one last pant as his breath finally returned, reached out an arm, concentrating on Po's staff. It began to shake and tremble, flying forward into his hand. He released himself from Tigress's hold and she reluctantly obliged, letting the tortoise go.

Her eyes widened as he placed the staff into her own hands.

It began to glow as Po went for another charge.

"He must learn to control it..." Oogway said weakly as she felt herself fading away, the Spirit Realm dissolving all around her.

Oogway jumped out of the way as a bright, white light suddenly surrounded her and the dragon that was getting closer and closer each second.

She was instantly blinded and knew no more.


	8. Chapter 8

That wasn't Po.

That couldn't have been Po.

He had outright _attacked_ her _and_ Master Oogway!

Po would never do that.

 _It wasn't him,_ Tigress told herself over and over as she lay on the wet and soggy grass of the Panda Village, violent rain pouring down onto her fur. _It wasn't him._

The dragon lay beside her, its chest rising up and down in a heavy motion as rain slid down its scales. Its eyes were closed, so she couldn't tell if they had switched back to their normal emerald color.

Why had they turned black? It didn't make any sense. Po was normal one minute and then crazy the next! What was going on? Oogway had told her that he had three days to 'change back.' She assumed that he meant three days to change back into a panda. What would happen after three days?

 _None_ of it made any sense.

Was Oogway even okay, especially after he'd been slammed with such force like he had? He couldn't die _again,_ could he? Po was going to be devastated to find that he'd hurt their master in such a way—if she _ever_ told him, that was.

But Tigress knew that he hadn't meant it. His dragon half must have taken over, and he couldn't control it.

 _He must learn to control it,_ Oogway had said to her before sending the two of them back to the Mortal Realm.

Realization suddenly hit her.

He had to learn to control the dragon side of him, or else...

"Tigress! Guys, they're back!" the voice of Viper reached her ears and she was soon aware of the Furious Five surrounding her and the dragon, bringing her back to reality.

They rushed out into the rain to their comrade, surprised when the weather suddenly began to clear up. The heavy rain stopped and the sun was able to peek out from behind a pile of white clouds that were slowly separating. The Five were instantly aware of the sudden weather change. Surprised, but aware. They quickly took a mental note of exactly when it had taken place—when Po had returned from the Spirit Realm.

"Stay back," she said sternly.

"Tigress, what's—"

She shot Crane a glare that clearly told him to just stop and listen. The group obliged, staying back from the large beast before them. Their hearts beat wildly for seemingly no reason. Why was Tigress telling them to stay away from Po?

Po himself groaned, his eyes finally opening. Tigress allowed herself to breathe a sigh of relief; so his eyes were back to normal...she could tell by their normal green color. It wasn't the normal that they wanted, but normal nonetheless while he was stuck as a dragon. He blinked in confusion when he found that they were back in the Mortal Realm. Glancing down at his body, he found that he was still a dragon, as well.

 _What happened?_ he asked in the form of a small, confused growl. He had, unfortunately, lost his ability to communicate with Tigress telepathically in her head. If only they were able to talk regularly in the Mortal Realm...it would make things so much easier.

"Master Oogway found us," Tigress began to explain, knowing that he would want an explanation as to why they had returned so soon.

 _What did he say?_ Po inwardly questioned, tilting his head to the side and blinking.

"He said you have to find inner peace as a dragon..." Tigress couldn't believe that she was actually lying. She was _lying_ to Po and putting words in Master Oogway's mouth. But it wasn't too far from the truth, right? Maybe if he just managed to calm himself down enough, he would change back; he'd been too riled up ever since they had first discovered that he'd been changed back into a dragon.

 _So all I have to do is calm down and find peace?_ he wondered. Easier said than done. He had been anything _but_ calm ever since he'd turned back into a dragon. But why had they been sent back to the mortal world so soon? Did something happen to Master Oogway? It was like there was a blank spot in his mind, a piece of a memory that was missing. Po made a quick glance up towards the blue sky, then back down to the Five, who were watching quietly. Something seemed different about their expressions...it was like they knew something that he didn't, especially Tigress. But he shook the thought away. She wouldn't lie to him.

"He had to send us back here," Tigress continued without fail. She was hurting herself with every lie she spewed out, but she had no choice. If Po found out what had occurred in the Spirit Realm, there was no telling what he would do or where he would go if he ran off. They couldn't chase after him again! "He wants you to concentrate...concentrate on turning back into a panda."

The Five watched the two of them closely. They didn't have a clue what happened or why Tigress was supposedly lying to Po, but they knew that she would tell them soon, even if it would hurt to keep the truth from the panda-turned-dragon. There was an invisible tension that they just couldn't see yet.

Po couldn't help but let out a little grumble. He had to concentrate on getting back to normal? Why couldn't Oogway just use his staff to change him back? Meditating wasn't one of his strong points; he couldn't sit still for more than five minutes. Well...if that was what it took, if all he truly had to do was get himself to calm down and concentrate on getting back to normal, then that was what he was going to do...it wasn't like he had any other choice.

"Tigress...there's something we have to tell you," Viper told her friend quietly. She glanced about strangely at the clear sky, at the pouring rain that was now no more except for the wet grass beneath their feet that was the only proof a storm had ever occurred. Crane nodded and Monkey gestured to one of the village houses that they had been taking shelter in from the storm. They started to make their way inside.

The dragon perked curiously, starting to follow them to the house. But he soon realized something—he couldn't fit inside even if he tried. Tigress turned back around to face Po, giving him a gentle but ever so slightly strained smile that he did not notice.

"We'll come back out soon," she reassured. If he couldn't fit inside, she wondered where he was going to sleep for the night...they would figure that out later.

Po nodded reluctantly.

"There's something I have to tell you, too," she said as they closed the door behind them.

"You go first," Mantis said, ready to hear what had gone on in the Spirit Realm.

xxxx

Po didn't mean to eavesdrop. He couldn't help it even if he tried, especially with his ears as sensitive as they were while he was a dragon. He sat outside the hut without even trying to peek inside, without even trying to look in through the window. Tigress would probably kick him if he tried, anyway.

They were whispering about something, and he knew that it was about _him._

They were talking about him, and something about three days.

What would happen in three days?

He sighed, light gray smoke emerging from his nostrils as he breathed out. He had forgotten that he could breathe fire if he wanted. He frowned, a slow realization suddenly dawning on him.

The rest of their words were drowned out by his horrible realization. It didn't sound important, anyway—something about the weather.

Three days was all he heard.

They had three days to find a way for him to get back to normal...or he would be stuck as a dragon forever.


	9. Chapter 9

Li was worried. He hadn't seen Po since he ran off at dinner yesterday, and the fact that no one else had seen him didn't help to ease his mind, either.

There were also the big claw marks that were raked along the side of the palace, which hadn't gone unnoticed by the other pandas. They were afraid at first that something might be a threat to themselves and the Valley of Peace, but Shifu had told them otherwise and that the Five had gone to 'take care of it.'

Whatever that meant, Li didn't know. All he knew was that his son was missing, and that Mr. Ping was just beginning to notice, as well; he'd been too busy in the noodle shop to notice any earlier.

"Shifu probably sent him on another mission," Mr. Ping tried to reason with Li while attempting to calm his own nerves. The two stood together in the shop, Li helping to serve customers.

"But he didn't even say goodbye," Li said in response.

"Oh, he runs off without saying anything sometimes. I had to stop him myself before he went off to fight that crazy peacock."

Li stiffened slightly at the mention of the 'crazy peacock,' but his reaction went unnoticed by Mr. Ping. He shook the thought of the one responsible for his previous village and wife away, far too worried for his son now to delve deeper into the past.

But he eventually just told himself to calm down. His son was probably out just doing his job, like Po had reminded him many times before. He had a duty as the Dragon Warrior, and Li trusted that he would be back soon after he finished whatever task was asked of him.

Li sighed, staring out at the shop's customers from behind the counter.

"You're right...he's probably with the Furious Five right now. Maybe it has something to do with the drought."

"I hope they have enough water wherever they are. It came on so suddenly!" Mr. Ping commented worriedly. "So strange...I've been having to ration by letting the customers ask if they need it."

Li nodded in agreement.

The weather _had_ been acting really weird lately. He was still worried, but he felt a little comforted. Po had faced worse than weather before. He was fine...right?

xxxx

 _Inner peace...inner peace...inner peace..._

The Dragon Warrior repeated the mantra quietly to himself over and over, trying to calm his nerves that just didn't seem to want to quit.

Tigress and the rest of the Five stood by, watching from a distance and trying not to interrupt Po's meditative state. His eyes were closed and he was lying down on the grass of the village, trying to tune out any sounds around him and focusing on only one thing: inner peace.

"That's it, Po," Tigress praised her friend gently.

Of course, it was hard for Po to concentrate on inner peace when he knew something that the Five apparently hadn't wanted him to know—the three day time limit. But he did his best to concentrate the best he could. Just when he was about to repeat the two words once again, a great rumbling was heard and the dragon's concentration was instantly broken, his eyes flickering open.

Tigress made a mental note that they were still, thankfully, their normal green color and hadn't been turned to black. She wondered if it was only when Po was anxious or upset that he would go from being the 'panda dragon' that they knew to something completely unrecognizable. But the last time his eyes had changed, he had been relaxed as he possibly could in the Spirit Realm. She guessed that it was a completely random occurrence, and was only going to get worse the closer they came to their three-day deadline. Still, she didn't want to take any chances. Po had to find peace with the dragon whether it was going to work or not.

There was an awkward silence as the Five sat with Po outside the Panda Village, the bright sun beginning to set. It left a beautiful pink sunset in its wake that almost made Po want to get up and fly right towards it—the only thing that prevented him from doing so was the fact that his stomach was continuing to let out growls that were nearly ten times as loud as when he had been a panda.

"You need something to eat, don't you," Tigress said in more of a statement than a question to finally break the silence. They had been sitting for the past hour just loitering outside the house and trying to come up with more solutions on how to get Po back to normal, besides concentrating on his inner peace. If Master Oogway couldn't help, or didn't _want_ to help—which Tigress doubted—then it was going to be a lot harder than they thought. The rest of the Furious Five knew now that Tigress's whole speech about inner peace had been a lie, everyone except Po.

If inner peace wasn't going to work, then what would? But they had to try _something._

Po's stomach growled again as if in response. _I haven't eaten since yesterday afternoon,_ he suddenly realized. It was amazing that he'd lasted so long without anything to eat! He'd been so distracted ever since he had turned into a dragon that food had completely slipped his mind. Maybe it was better that he'd forgotten, because his inner peace was now dashed once again.

"You must not have eaten since you ran off at dinner yesterday..." Tigress mused, glancing back up at Po as the Five decided to make themselves comfortable on his nose and feet. She debated telling them to leave him alone, but he didn't seem to mind. His inner peace had been ruined, anyway.

This was going to be a little difficult...what did dragons eat? Well, if inner peace wasn't the answer...then maybe some food was a good place to start. It was one of Po's favorite things, after all.

Po bent his head down slowly to sniff gently at the packs of food that Tigress and the Five had brought with them. Sure, she had thought to be prepared and also bring his staff along on their journey, but she hadn't exactly thought through what a dragon might want to snack on; this was all new to them.

"I guess you can't eat noodles," Monkey said, trying to come up with ideas. He had found a place for himself atop one of Po's front feet as the dragon lay as calm as he could on the grass that had finally dried from the storm.

"Or dumplings," Mantis added in as he watched Po scrounge through the bags, nearly falling off of his nose where he had been perched in the process.

"Or soup," Crane couldn't help but add in.

Po let out a small whine, his stomach grumbling even louder. _Or radishes._ Naming his favorite foods that he could no longer snack on wasn't helping. He lifted his head out of the bags, a frustrated and tired expression on his face.

Tigress shot the other three a glare. If what they had told her was true, what they had said about the weather...then the Dragon Warrior didn't need any more stress than he already had. He had to remain calm and collected, especially so they didn't run the risk of his dragon half taking over.

Tigress thought, trying to think of something, _anything_ that a big dragon could eat in the panda village. The sound of water reached her ears that she had previously tuned out, a sound that had simply blended in with the rest of the mountain's naturally-made music.

If there was a river nearby, that meant there had to be...

"I have an idea," she told Po and the Five, glancing upward towards the hungry dragon.


	10. Chapter 10

_Fish?_ Po asked, unimpressed with her 'idea' as he stood with the Five at the edge of a river that flowed through the mountain area around them.

Tigress nodded. "This will probably fill you right up."

"All you have to do is catch a few," Mantis said like it was one of the easiest things you could ever do.

Po glanced down at the rushing water. He'd never gone fishing before as a panda, so he didn't have the slightest clue on where to begin as a _dragon,_ of all things. He'd never really feasted on fish, either. Most of his diet consisted of pasta and dumplings, especially soup. He knew that he could most likely just dunk his head in the water and grab a mouthful, but raw _and_ live fish probably wasn't a good idea. He snorted, shaking his head and refusing to take a step further.

Tigress sighed.

"How do you know you won't like it if you don't try it?" Viper tried to reason. Po glanced down at the river again. Maybe it was just the dragon part of him, but fish actually did sound pretty appetizing. If fish was what dragons found appetizing, then maybe it was what they really _did_ eat.

Reluctantly, Po slowly stepped into the frigid water, taking his time so as to get used to the cold that was spreading over his body the deeper he went. But strangely, the cold didn't seem to bother him. Not too much, at least. As a panda, his fur had protected him from the cold whenever he had decided to go for a swim, especially the time when he'd dived in with his father and the rest of the pandas as he was learning just _exactly_ how to be a panda. Now, in a way, he was learning how to be a dragon. If this was what it took to get him back to normal, then so be it.

A fish suddenly and unexpectedly leaped directly in front of his face. He made a move for the jumping fish, attempting to catch it in his jaws, but to no avail. The fish flopped and escaped its previously inevitable fate, falling back into the water.

Monkey couldn't help but laugh at the sight of a fishing dragon. Po grumbled softly and the other Five's eyes widened, realizing what he was about to do. Monkey was too caught up in his laughter and before he was aware enough to get out of the way, Po raised his tail and swung it in the simian's direction. Monkey was instantly soaked, ceasing his laughter soon after and shaking lightly as a breeze blew past.

Po shook his head, rolling his eyes at his friend. He looked back towards the water and concentrated, waiting for a fish to pop out again; though it was nice and clear, it was moving too fast for him to make anything out—now that he thought about it, he couldn't just dunk his head in and grab a mouthful. They were probably all over the place, especially since they knew that there was something after them!

A second fish finally jumped and this time, Po was ready. He instantly moved his head forward and opened his mouth, snatching the floppy creature in his jaws at last. Victory! The fish almost immediately went still, much to Po's relief. He felt a little bad that he was actually eating live food, but he had to...he couldn't just starve.

The dragon glanced at Tigress with the fish hanging in his mouth and she nodded her approval. He wanted to swallow. He _tried_ to swallow, but he just couldn't; raw fish did _not_ have a very nice flavor, and the same could be said for how it smelled. His nose wrinkled and he attempted to swallow anyway, his hunger pangs getting the better of him. Crane and Mantis laughed as he made a face, like he'd eaten something sour. The fish managed to go down and Po nearly gagged, taking a gulp of water to make up for the taste.

Though the fish hadn't tasted great and was hard to get down, Po's hunger pains almost instantly began to fade away. He needed more—he was _craving_ more, his dragon counterpart finally satisfied.

The fish still seemed to know that something was going on at the surface. They were playing it safe, making it hard for Po to successfully catch anything; they simply refused to jump at all. He remained at the ready just in case, keeping his feet planted firmly on the river's rocky bottom. But then a second fish finally decided to leap into the air.

All of Po's training flashed through his mind and he went for it as quick as he could, soon finding himself with yet another successful catch. But the panda-dragon didn't exactly want to swallow the fish whole and raw again. He looked towards the shore, surprised to see that the Five had actually set up a dry pile of sticks that they could use to start a fire. But the thing was...they hadn't exactly started making a fire.

Oh, wait...they wanted _him_ to start the fire.

Po set his newly captured fish gently on the ground; it wasn't like it was going anywhere, right? He made his way to the pile of sticks. It wasn't too big of a pile, but enough to cook a fish or two. He didn't exactly _want_ to make a fire himself, but he knew that he was going to have to get used to doing things like this. He took a deep breath and let it out gently as he could, being careful not to start a full-on blaze that could wreck the entire village. The sticks began to light and before Po and the Five knew it, a fire had been successfully lighted.

The second fish that Po had caught was placed above the flames so that if could be cooked and, in the end, taste better than his first catch had.

The Five watched, almost relieved, as Po finally began to really enjoy his self-caught meals. They had lost count at ten fish with the way the dragon was progressing, finding new ways to catch and then devour his prey.

The dragon sighed in content, his stomach nearly full. _Just one more,_ he thought, heading back towards the river. He'd been in the water for so long that he was used to the cold by now, not even shivering as he dipped himself in again without hesitation.

"All done?" Tigress asked when Po finished his last fish on the shore, the fire that he had created dying out by that point.

Po nodded, sighing once more in content. His stomach was finally full and as a result, he was happier than he'd felt in a long while. Tigress smiled, the other four following suit. Po hadn't changed back to his normal self yet, but at least he was happy. He rested his head in between his front feet next to the fading fire, about to close his eyes. Since he was too big to fit inside any of the village houses, the Five had decided to spend the night with him outside.

Everything was starting to come together, or at least Tigress hoped it was. She hoped that inner peace was going to work like she had said it would. She hoped that Po would never find out that she had ever lied about their experience in the Spirit Realm together and what had happened with her and Master Oogway, how he had attacked the both of them.

But her hopes were dashed when she suddenly heard Viper's quiet and _worried_ voice.

"Po? What's wrong?"

His eyes were shut, but he hadn't fallen asleep—his body was shaking and trembling. His eyes opened for a split second and Tigress could see that they were still their normal green color, but they were wide and panicked, like he knew this time that something was wrong. He was fighting it this time unlike in the Spirit Realm and Tigress couldn't help but wonder if that was a good sign, a sign that he was getting closer to controlling his dragon side. But he only stared at her as realization poured over his features; it was then she knew that he must have remembered what had happened between her and Master Oogway.

His efforts to fight were no match for the true dragon underneath, and Tigress could only watch helplessly as his eyes switched from green to black once again. She stood up slowly from where she was previously sitting next to the dying fire.

"Tigress, what are you doing?" Crane squeaked in his own panicked voice. While she had told them of the creature that had taken over Po, they were seeing the real dragon for the first time, and they weren't prepared. They hadn't seen how strong it was in the Spirit Realm, able to break itself free from a nerve attack by Master Oogway himself. Tigress wasn't going to let anything happen to them!

She stood firmly in place, waiting for the feral dragon to make a move. But the dragon stood still, its dark eyes glinting in what was left of the sun. For a second, Tigress thought that Po had won back control.

But she was wrong, the beast's eyes still black. After telling the Five her story, they had told her theirs of how the weather had suddenly gone from storming to absolutely clear when she and Po took off to the Spirit Realm, and how it started to storm yet again when he returned, then how it had once _again_ cleared when Po had apparently gained back control. She also remembered the thunder storm that had happened the night Po first went missing, how it started to rain after he'd used his powers on her and ran off, the storm clouds following his direction.

It all made sense.

From behind the dragon, Tigress and the Five could see that the river was starting to rise under its command.


	11. Chapter 11

It had only been a day, and the drought was getting worse. Shifu had no idea how such a thing could be possible, but it was happening. It was unbearably hot, so much so that everyone in the Valley of Peace had taken to staying indoors where it was cooler. A little bit, at least. It was like everything was being dried up, shriveling away into nothing.

He hoped that his students were safe from the baking sun. Long ago, the heat would not have mattered and they would have resumed training while still making sure that they were hydrated; there wasn't even enough water to go around now.

Shifu assumed that there was plenty of water in the Panda Village if that was where they were, anyway. Tigress had told him that was where Po might have flown off to...the red panda hadn't told the Dragon Warrior's fathers for fear that her assumption was wrong if they decided to go after him like the Five.

But unlike the Five, Li and Mr. Ping had no idea that their son had been turned back into a gigantic dragon...Shifu hadn't wanted to add any more stress onto their plates; it was bad enough that the noodle shop was drawing in countless thirsty customers from all over the dying Valley.

Dying...if that was truly the case, then Shifu knew they would have to find a new home for the time being, at least until the strange heat wave blew over. Maybe they could go to the Panda Village whether Po and the Five were there or not.

"What are you reading?" the older master asked little Bao as he attempted to seek refuge from the scorching sun in the Scroll Room and maybe brush himself up on some of his studies.

"It's a scroll about dragons!" the panda cub replied enthusiastically. "Like the one that Po was turned into!"

Shifu's eyes widened and he turned his head so he could see the scroll better. "What?" He had to remind himself that like Po's dads, Bao was clueless as well about the whole incident with Po. He was probably just talking about the panda's first time turning into a dragon so that he could fight Kai. Now that Shifu thought about it, did Kai have something to do with the odd weather? But that wasn't possible. Po had trapped him in the Spirit Realm and he hadn't been back since. Could he manipulate the elements from his prison? Shifu doubted it. Whatever the reason, he knew that the weather they were currently experiencing was not normal.

"Look!" Bao said in excitement at what he had found. He'd expected the thousands of scrolls to be about Kung Fu and its many different techniques, even the basic ones that Po had shown him before the panda became sick. Judging from Shifu's reaction, he hadn't expected any scrolls about dragons, either.

Soon after mentioning his panda friend, Bao's face fell. "I haven't seen Po in awhile. Do you know where he is?"

Shifu shook his head in an honest answer. He gazed at the scroll that Bao held in one paw, and his new action figure of the dragon in the other. There was a drawing of the dragon that looked almost exactly like Bao's figure. Shifu would have felt bad for nearly ripping the scroll away from Bao, but his heart had quickened and didn't seem to want to slow down.

"Where did you find this?" he asked warily, glancing about at the thousands of scrolls. If Bao had found one, that meant there had to be more, right? But Shifu doubted it - this was most likely just a fluke. An accident.

 _There are no accidents,_ Oogway's voice echoed in his mind.

"It was near the bottom somewhere..." Bao's face wrinkled as he tried to remember. Shifu nodded; the shelves were too high up for Bao to reach without a ladder! "It said that they have the ability to control weather. That's so cool!"

Shifu's heart pounded harder, confirming Bao's statement as he read through the scroll itself.

 _Ancient Chinese dragons possessed the ability to fly and control bodies of water, including changes in the weather._

 _No...it can't be..._ Shifu thought frantically, his mind racing. But he couldn't think of any other explanation as to why the weather had been acting so strange lately. First the thunder storm and then a drought soon after? It all began after Po had turned back into a dragon, taking off to who knew where. It also fit in with Po's new ability—the ability to move objects at his command.

He noticed that a piece of the scroll was ripped off. _These mysterious creatures were summoned every thousand years to stop..._

The writing trailed off near the edge before the page ended. Stop what? Was it important? Shifu wondered if any of it had something to do with Po's transformation, if it had something to do with the weather phenomenon they were currently facing.

Well, it wasn't like he was going to accomplish anything else in this heat!

"How would you like to help me find the rest of this scroll?" he asked, looking up at an excited Bao. The cub nodded eagerly, and so the two took it upon themselves to spend the remainder of their day inside the cool Scroll Room to find the missing page.

xxxx

When Po finally came to, the last thing he expected was for everything around him to be soaking wet. The grass beneath his feet was soggy with mud splattered everywhere, and the Five nowhere in sight. He sighed, realizing that this was the second time that he'd blacked out. What was going on? Looking over at the river, he saw that it was exactly in the spot where he'd seen it before waking up...if it was even capable of moving on its own in such a way. Had it flooded somehow?

Letting out a concerned whine, he scanned the area the best he could through the darkness. Where was everyone? What happened? He tried to remember what had happened last, but another blank spot scoured his mind. He didn't have a clue as to any of the events that had occurred before the sun went down, the only thing coming close was that he had just finished eating, resting by the fire that was now put out. But not even the sticks that they had used for the flames were there anymore. Everything was gone like it had just vanished into thin air, or it lay sprawled across the ground in a damaged heap.

A wooden board suddenly moved without warning, making him jump.

 _Tigress!_ Po cried, watching as she managed to lift the wood off of her. The other four began to emerge from their shelters that were just as broken up. He inched his way cautiously towards Tigress until he was standing a few feet from her.

She shied away at first, like he was a stranger she didn't know, but visibly relaxed once she made eye contact.

"Po..." she smiled, reaching a paw out to touch his nose. "It's okay. We're okay. You didn't do this."

 _What do you mean 'I didn't do this?'_ Po thought frantically as he continued to gaze at his surroundings. Who _else_ could have done this?! The entire Panda Village had almost been destroyed because of him! He was grateful that no one else had gotten hurt, that no one else had been _able_ to get hurt with them being back at the palace.

He had to run. He had to leave again. He had to get out of here!

"Po, wait!" This was exactly what Tigress had been afraid of, that the Dragon Warrior would run off a second time when he learned that he had hurt his friends. But she refused to let him do it again. "It was you, but it wasn't..."

He stopped in his tracks, turning his head back around and blinking in confusion. _What do you mean?_ He found himself asking that question a lot recently.

"When we went to the Spirit Realm," Tigress continued, "something happened...to you."

Po listened attentively. Images flashed through his mind, one by one filling in the blank spot that had him so confused. He could remember snapping at Tigress. He remembered slamming himself into Master Oogway after breaking free from his nerve attack. He could remember not being able to control his actions at all. Was that what Tigress meant by 'it wasn't him?'

"I kept it from you because I was afraid you would run away again...but it was wrong of me and I'm sorry. I just didn't want to see you get hurt."

Po rumbled, bending his head downwards to give Tigress a gentle nuzzle. _You were right. I would_ _have run away,_ he thought gingerly. _I was **going** to run away. But I'm not going to run away, now._ _We have to figure this out..._

"Po, Master Oogway told me that you have three days to change back. I think if—if we don't make it in time, you'll...be permanently stuck like this...as the Dragon Warrior...but you won't be yourself."

Po gave her another gentle nudge. _I know._

Tigress blinked when he didn't react as shocked as he probably should have.

"You heard us talking, didn't you?" Crane asked as he remembered their 'group meeting' inside the hut.

Po nodded sheepishly. A loud crack of thunder suddenly sounded and Tigress glanced back up at Po.

"There's something else we have to tell you," she said. No more secrets.

But they had to hurry, for by the time the sun rose, they would only have two more days left.


	12. Chapter 12

_It's Dawn of the Second Day! 48 hours remain (kudos to you if you got that reference xD) I would like to say thanks again to everyone who's reviewed, followed, faved or whoever is reading this series! I really appreciate it! :)_

xxxx

Po and the Furious Five were at a loss. How did one go about changing a dragon back into a panda? The sun had risen—after today, there would only be less than twenty four hours left to figure out how to get the Dragon Warrior back to normal.

It didn't help that Po now knew that inner peace had been a lie, that it was just something that Tigress had made up—he should have known better that it was going to take a lot more than calming himself down. But he _wanted_ to find peace. He _wanted_ to make amends with his inner dragon. But how was he going to do that?

They had put the Panda Village back together the best that they could. It hadn't taken long, especially with Po's help. Though he had refused to use his Chi, his size alone was enough to get things done at a steady pace. All the while in the backs of their minds, they continued to come up with solution after solution, but none of them stuck or made sense.

They were just completely lost. Tigress wished that Oogway had given her more information besides the three-day time limit, but 'Po' hadn't exactly given him a chance. It was so strange...almost as soon as they had arrived in the Spirit Realm, Po's dragon side had completely taken over, like it had _known_ that they had left the Mortal Realm.

Sighing, Tigress knew that they would have to figure everything out on their own; she just hoped that Master Oogway had recovered from Po's counter attack. He had remained quiet most of the day—though he couldn't exactly talk—but he was less expressive. Tigress could tell that he was dealing with the fact that he had attacked their own master, as devastated as she suspected that he would be.

 _You know,_ Po thought as they rested outside the village when their work was done. _If I wasn't freaking out right now, I would think it's totally awesome that I have the power to control the weather._ In truth, the thought terrified him just as much as hurting his friends by accident did. It was sunny and bright, but a light rain had started to dribble and hadn't stopped since the early morning. Po had been too afraid to try and see if there were any kinds of techniques to it, like thinking 'rain!' or 'snow!' so he had decided to just try and ignore it for the time being...with little luck.

"We have to figure out how it works," Tigress tried to reason with him as she looked up at the drops of rain. It wasn't too far-fetched for it to be coming down while there was still sunlight, but the odd thing was that there weren't any clouds in sight for there to be a source of where it was coming from.

 _What if something happens?_ Po asked in a quiet whine, his nerves getting the better of him. Now that he knew what had gone on in the Spirit Realm, guilt was tearing him apart inside and out. He'd hurt Tigress _and_ Master Oogway! It didn't matter if he hadn't been aware of his actions. What if the dragon completely took over again? He didn't know if he could handle that. It took everything he had not to just get up and run away again, to keep himself in place until they figured what exactly was going on and how he could learn to control his...other half. Now he also had the weather to worry about...how fun.

"Don't worry," Viper said reassuringly. "You can do this."

 _I don't even know where to start..._ Po thought, turning his gaze up towards the sky. Well, he had to try. _Rain, rain, go away._

Nothing happened.

 _Come_ _again another day._

Still nothing.

But then he remembered inner peace again. It had all been a lie, but he had to try _something._

He closed his eyes and relaxed the best that he could, concentrating on the falling drops. He searched inside for an anchor to grab hold of and imagined the rain going back to where it had come from, and how insanely awesome it would be to watch rain falling _up._

But still, the light and mysterious drizzle continued.

"Maybe we can try again later," Monkey suggested.

Tigress shook her head. "We don't have later."

Po was determined. He continued to concentrate.

xxxx

They had been looking for most of the day, and had no luck in finding the missing page of the scroll. Bao had gone back to the barracks, leaving Shifu to continue his search alone. The two had looked high and low, in every nook and cranny of the thousands of scrolls, but came up with nothing.

He thought it was ironic that the little cub had found a scroll about dragons, and it hadn't been the Dragon Scroll itself.

 _These mysterious creatures were summoned every_ _thousand_ _years to stop..._

 _Stop what?_ the question rang in Shifu's mind again. _Every thousand years..._

The Dragon Scroll had rested in the mouth of the golden dragon statue for nearly a thousand years until Master Oogway had chosen Po...it all fit together, but there was something missing. Closely scanning the scroll in his hands, he could see that a circle had been drawn underneath the dragon just before the page ripped. At least, Shifu suspected that it was a circle based on the way that it had been drawn.

Wait. The Dragon Scroll...

It was safe and sound in the mouth of the dragon, just above the Moon Pool. Po had decided that it was the safest place after his fight with Tai Lung; he'd wanted to put it back where it belonged, and it had stayed there ever since. Using his staff in one hand and holding the second scroll in the other, Shifu lured it upon the wind and pink blossoms as he had the first time.

The scrolls evenly lined up, just as he had guessed they would. He placed the mystery scroll over the top of the golden, blank Dragon Scroll. Sunlight illuminated the ripped area, and words slowly began to reveal themselves.

Shifu suddenly realized that it hadn't been 'nothing.' The secret hadn't simply been 'you' like Po had originally thought.

He was about to learn the true secret of the Dragon Scroll, and Po wasn't here. Should he really open it? It didn't feel right. But the second scroll's message just wouldn't leave his mind alone. What if it really _was_ important and did indeed explain why Po had transformed into a dragon again? The Dragon Warrior was being summoned by the universe and it had to be for a good reason.

Shifu's eyes widened to be ten times their normal size when the words fully formed at last, and another picture materialized that was connected to the dragon drawing.

His heart began to pound harder than it ever had in his life.

Oogway had once said that there was no such thing as good news or bad news; there was only news.

But this was definitely the worst news that Shifu had ever heard in his entire life, even worse than the news that Tai Lung had broken out of prison. He was close to hyperventilating but managed to keep himself together, fighting against the vertigo that was threatening to pull him under. A deep and horrible dread filled the pit of his gut.

The scrolls, including his staff, all but clattered to the floor.

This was important news, and it was serious. And he knew that there was absolutely no way to stop it unless Po returned to the Valley of Peace.

xxxx

It was dark, and they had decided to set up camp in the middle of the village. The rain had finally stopped, but it hadn't been under Po's command. Now the night sky was filled with storm clouds, which was unexpected; it was like mother nature had decided to take an opposite turn, what with the light rain and no clouds.

Po and Tigress each stared at the flickering flames of a new fire that the dragon had lit. The others had decided to go to bed, discouraged about the day's events but wanting to get ready for the next. Since Po was too big to fit inside any of the huts, they had opted to rest with him by the fire.

 _Tigress...it's happening again. I can feel it..._ Po suddenly whined, his body beginning to shiver as the pure dragon inside fought to scratch its way to the surface.

"It's okay," Tigress soothed gently in response to his whine, watching as his eyes flashed between green and black in the fire's glow. Po squeezed his eyes shut, his body shaking even harder.

"It's okay...it'll be over soon...just concentrate." She remained at the ready just in case. If Po's dragon half completely took over again, they would have no choice but to fight...or run. But she had made a silent promise to herself that she would stay by Po's side until worst came to worst, and even after. She wanted to offer a physical form of comfort, but decided against it; he couldn't get distracted now.

Po concentrated the best that he could through his trembling. He concentrated on his original body, his panda body, and how much he wanted to go back to being a panda. Not that he _didn't_ want to be the Dragon Warrior anymore...he just wanted a choice. He wanted to be able to switch back and forth between bodies without any issues. He had to get _control_ over his dragon half and show it who was boss.

His shaking eventually lessened and his breathing slowly returned to normal. He let out a quiet, relieved yet tired sigh.

It was only when Tigress knew for sure that Po was sound asleep did she rest her paw gently on his nose. She smiled, though deep inside she knew that time was running out. She knew that chances of accomplishing their goal were low; they had no idea what to do!

Once the sun rose again, they would only have one more day to help Po...but he was already making a lot of progress.

Unknowing to the sleeping Five, Po was stirring in his own sleep. Black eyes opened as a great rumbling sounded in the distance and the dark sky was streaked with an ominous red.


	13. Chapter 13

Tigress woke with a start. She wasn't even sure why; she hadn't been dreaming, at least not that she could remember. But she felt that something was amiss.

She knew for sure that something was wrong when she heard the frantic voice of Crane and the others.

"Po's gone! He wasn't here when we woke up!"

"No..." Tigress murmured quietly to herself. Why had they let this happen? Why had _she_ let this happen? He must have gotten up unknowingly in the middle of the night. That... _thing_ must have fully taken over again. Someone should have been keeping watch! But then again, if they had been awake...then wouldn't the dragon have attacked? With everyone asleep, it had just decided to get up and walk off to who knew where. She just hoped that somehow, Po would win back control and return.

"Uhh, guys..." Mantis said anxiously from his usual spot atop Crane's hat. He glanced upward towards the sky, which contained not gray, dark storm clouds...but _red._

"What is that?" Viper questioned in wonder. Tigress frowned as she followed their shocked and curious gazes. Thunder cracked and rumbled, and a cool chill blew past.

"I have no idea, but I don't know if I want to find out," Crane said uneasily. First there had been rain without any clouds, and then clouds without any rain. Now the clouds themselves were _red._ What was going on?!

"We have to find Po," Tigress told the others firmly. "Whether he's himself or not, I think he might have something to do with this."

"What do we do if he's not...himself?" Viper asked quietly.

Tigress thought for a moment. If the dragon wasn't going to give up control, then it was just a dragon. A dragon that might be the cause of all the strange things that were happening. They couldn't just let it run loose! But it wasn't _just_ a dragon. It was still Po deep down somewhere; he'd proven that the night before when he'd managed to stay in control. She then remembered what Shifu had said to Crane and Mantis before they had taken off to find Kai.

"Don't engage," she said, scanning the area for any signs of the massive dragon. She couldn't find any from where she stood, but they had to start looking, and fast. "It's too powerful. We have to try and snap Po out of it. We can't let it continue doing...that," she finished, gesturing towards the red clouds.

"And what do we do if we _can't_ snap him out of it?" Mantis asked almost regretfully, afraid to hear the answer. But they needed a plan, no matter how much that plan was going to hurt.

Tigress's heart pounded, rushing in her ears. "We do what needs to be done," she answered quietly as she tried her best to keep herself together. The Five stared back with wide, mournful eyes in response to her answer. "Today is the third day that Master Oogway warned me of. Po is going to be permanently stuck as a dragon by sundown, and we can't let it bring harm to anyone."

They nodded in slow motion at her words, hardly believing what they were hearing. They were going to have to bring down their master, their teacher, their comrade...their _friend._ While each of them were friends with Po, they knew that the panda and tiger had a special, stronger bond than any one of them combined. Tigress had changed from her stiff and strict nature to someone more open and caring. Shifu had gone through the same process, and it was all because of that one panda. They could hardly imagine how _Tigress_ of all people felt about this.

Tigress reached into one of the bags that they had placed by the fire before going to sleep. She brought out Po's staff and held it close, having no plans to let go anytime soon.

But a roar suddenly split the air and the Five reacted quickly, whipping their heads around to see the dragon itself. Its dark eyes stared back at them, and Tigress felt as though her soul was being stared straight into. She wanted to see the color green again. She wanted her friend to come back, her _panda_ friend. If they failed now, they were never going to see the Po that they knew so well again.

Reluctantly, she handed the staff to Monkey and slowly began to approach the reptile. He held the staff close as the other Five gaped at her actions, but remained silent. Once Tigress made up her mind, there was no changing it, and she was determined to save Po. They all were, and so they allowed her to continue moving forward while they stayed behind.

The dragon rumbled lightly, but stood still. It seemed to be tense, on guard. Its gaze flickered from Tigress to the sky above, like it was waiting to make a move to attack. But Tigress wasn't afraid. She was going to get her friend back no matter what the cost.

"Po," Tigress said calmly as she took a few more steps forward. "I know you're in there. You have to come back to us."

The dragon blinked as if in response, shaking its head. Its eyes remained black. Tigress took the blink and head shake as a sign that Po was trying to fight back. She moved forward again and the dragon watched her warily, staying firmly in place. It let out a warning growl, but Tigress took no heed. She was close enough to reach her hand out.

It all happened too fast. Just when it seemed that Tigress was going to be successful in her mission to bring Po back, when the Five saw for just a split second the green eyes that they knew instead of black, the dragon went for Tigress just as she was about to place her paw on its nose.

They could only watch in terror as green eyes returned to black and the dragon slammed its body full-force into hers with just as much strength and power as Shen's cannon that had flung them all backwards in a fiery explosion. A flash of white lightning nearly blinded them and she landed in a heap on the ground. The dragon let out an angry screech, soon after taking off into the sky. The red clouds, much to their horror, seemed to follow at a steady pace...in the direction of the Valley of Peace.

"Tigress!" the Five cried, running to the fallen warrior's side. She lay frighteningly still.

xxxx

Po was gone. The Five were gone. He couldn't keep this new information all to himself; he had to tell _someone!_ But who...? Shifu wracked his brain, trying to come up with an answer. But then he remembered the Dragon Warrior's fathers. He knew that he could trust them with such information.

Li and Mr. Ping were just as horrified as he was. Who wouldn't be? Which was why the three of them had decided to withold the news from the other Jade Palace residents in order to keep everyone from falling into a panic—there would be chaos everywhere if this got out.

"Isn't there _anything_ we can do?" Li asked Shifu desperately as they stood by the Moon Pool. It had dried up and was empty, gone away due to the dreadful heat that hadn't let up in the slightest. In fact, the heat had only gotten worse with each passing day, forcing everyone to stay indoors where it was cooler.

Shifu shook his head, holding the two scrolls in his hands. Mr. Ping had been skeptical at first that such a thing was even possible, that it was actually _happening_ as they spoke. But it was, and he was just as horrified as Li and Shifu, though he was honored that Po's master had come to the two of them during a time of great need.

"No," Shifu responded calmly as he could. "It is the Dragon Warrior's destiny."

"But if Po does this..." Mr. Ping said in a quiet whisper, tears threatening to fall into the dry pool beside him.

"We cannot interfere," Shifu said firmly, "no matter what happens. I thank the both of you for coming. Go back to the palace with everyone and take shelter inside."

Li and Mr. Ping nodded.

 _It's gonna take a lot more than the end of the world to keep us apart,_ Li remembered saying to Po as he and Mr. Ping made their way back to the palace. The outside heat meshed with his fur, wrapping around it intensely like countless layers of warm blankets. But now he knew _why_ the weather had been acting so strange, why Po had been turned back into a dragon as Shifu had revealed to them, and why the Five had left to go on a 'mission.'

Back then, the end of the world had meant the destruction of his village. It had meant the end of all things kung fu when Shen had created his cannons, and when Kai was on his way to destroy the new Panda Village and take everyone's Chi.

But he'd never imagined that the _literal_ end of the world would come so soon, or that his son was going to be the one to stop it and save the universe at his own expense.


	14. Chapter 14

"What do we do now?" Viper asked quietly as they stood beside their fallen friend.

"We have to get help," Monkey said as they stared down at the listless body of Tigress. She hadn't moved since the creature—not _Po_ —had nearly killed her with a bolt of lightning. But she wasn't dead, thank goodness. Despite how still she was, the Five could see her chest rising and falling in a steady motion.

"But how?" Crane asked as they tried to think of solutions. They were in the Panda Village, far from the Valley of Peace. The dragon had taken off in the direction of said Valley, and they could only imagine the horrors that it would inflict upon their home. Tigress was right—they had to put a stop to it. But how were they going to get there in time? They couldn't just follow Po like they had when he'd first ran off. Though the journey was long, it hadn't taken much time to catch up to him if they never stopped. But now they had a wounded warrior to take care of, and she wasn't going to be able to travel far without lots of stopping.

Monkey held tightly onto the staff that Tigress had given him before she tried to face the dragon, an idea forming in his mind. It was crazy, but it was the only thing he could think of that could possibly be of any help.

"This can take us to the Spirit Realm, right?" he said slowly, unsurly as he remembered Po and Tigress flying off to see Master Oogway. "So it should be able to take us to the Valley of Peace."

Their eyes widened at his suggestion.

"How?" Viper wanted to know. Po's staff was special. It was given to the panda by Master Oogway himself, and held many undiscovered secrets. But would it really take them back home? The red clouds loomed over them in the village, and they knew they didn't have much time left. The day was almost over already, and Po was going to be stuck as the dragon that had nearly taken Tigress's life.

"Maybe we have to concentrate?" Mantis suggested, even though he was doubtful that it would work; concentrating hadn't really done them any favors lately. Po was still a dragon and the weather was still acting weird because of said dragon. But they had to do _something!_

"It's worth a try," Crane said, "we have to warn everyone." Warn everyone that a gigantic dragon was on its way to destroy the Valley of Peace, if they weren't too late; Po was much quicker than them now with his new ability to soar through the clouds. This was even worse than when Tai Lung had broken out of prison—if a snow leopard could wreck that much havoc, imagine what a full-on dragon could do!

The only problem was that they weren't even sure where to begin. How would they get Po's staff to transport them back to the Valley of Peace? None of them were the Dragon Warrior. Would it only listen to Oogway's successor?

Monkey gripped the staff tighter. "We have to try..."

Monkey closed his eyes, hoping for the best. He did the first thing that came to mind and concentrated on the Valley of Peace, willing the staff to take them back.

A few moments passed, but nothing happened. Everything seemed to be still around them except for the strange red clouds that had completely enveloped the sky overhead. Before Monkey could open his eyes, he felt another pair of hands wrap around his, and two others, including a pair of wings, joining in soon after.

The staff, much to their surprise, began to shake. From behind their closed eyelids, a bright and golden light shone. They each concentrated on the Valley, on the Jade Palace and how much they wanted— _needed_ —to return.

They were the Dragon Warrior's friends, and it seemed to understand their time of need.

Monkey suddenly felt strange, as if one of his legs had fallen asleep. His entire body tingled for a moment that to him lasted an eternity. He felt that the right time to open his eyes was when the tingling stopped, and he was thrilled to see that yes...it worked! They were back in the Valley of Peace, in the Jade Palace!

"I can't believe that worked!" Mantis exclaimed in excitement.

"We gotta get her to Master Shifu!" Crane said hurriedly.

xxxx

"That's impossible!" the bird argued once Shifu had told them of his findings; something about the dragon that was supposed to _save_ the world. "It shot a lightning bolt and hurt Tigress! It hurt _us_ with a huge tidal wave and nearly destroyed the village!"

"And it's making those freaky looking clouds," Mantis couldn't help but add.

Shifu blinked in surprise at his students' words. Was it possible that the Dragon Scroll was wrong, or that he had misinterpreted it? If the dragon was as violent as the Five were saying, and Po couldn't control it...

"No," a voice suddenly coughed. The group turned in shock and relief to see Tigress awake and struggling to get up from her spot on the floor where they had rested her gently next to the dry Moon Pool. "It didn't hurt me. It _saved_ me."

"Tigress, that's crazy! It struck a bolt of _lightning_ at you!" Viper cried.

"No," Tigress repeated, "that wasn't the dragon. I was talking, trying to get Po to come out of it. He almost made it, but lost control again just before the bolt struck. It was like the dragon knew that it was going to hit me if I didn't move."

The group fell into a silent shock, hardly believing their ears.

"Then what about the tidal wave that almost washed us away?" Mantis demanded. None of this was making any sense. That dragon had been after them from the start, and now Tigress was defending it because of one save? It couldn't be trusted!

"I don't think the river rose because of the dragon," Tigress said in almost a whisper. She glanced at Shifu and he stiffened, the Dragon Scroll still in his hands. He sighed, knowing that it was the right time to tell his students. He didn't want to tell them. He didn't want them to know that a terrible fate was about to befall the Valley of Peace...befall the _world._ But he _had_ to tell them or risk the Five going after the dragon in a state of fury.

He handed the scroll to Tigress, who took it in her own paws with a look of curiosity and worry all in one. The Dragon Scroll was blank...there was nothing on it! Po had told them that the secret had been 'you' all along. But there was writing on the scroll this time; she frowned as she stared, reading every detail that there was. A picture of a dragon sat in the middle of text where it seemed that the page had been torn, and she looked back at Shifu in confusion. He sighed a second time at the inevitable, reaching for a second scroll.

It was then that Tigress realized that the scroll Shifu was handing her was the Dragon Scroll itself, not the one already in her hands.

There had been hidden words on the Dragon Scroll the entire time, connecting to another scroll that had been lost over the years. No, not another scroll. It was _all_ the Dragon Scroll, the missing piece finally found.

The universe was drawn in the middle of the scroll, and the dragon was circled around it in a protective motion, like the yin and yang symbol.

 _These mysterious creatures were summoned every thousand years to stop imbalance among the universe._

And just like that, realization poured over her.

The true dragon inside Po was being summoned to stop the end of all times, to bring peace and balance across the universe that needed to be restored every thousand years. It had a mission to accomplish, and she and the Five had been unknowingly trying to prevent that mission from being accomplished. She remembered that night by the fire when Po had struggled against it, and the morning after when the red clouds had first appeared.

Oogway's words came rushing back to her, his panicked expression etching itself inside her mind.

 _If he does not change back within three days..._

 _He must learn to control it.._.

Po wasn't supposed to _fight_ his inner dragon...he needed to _accept_ it before the third day, or risk the entire universe itself falling apart.

"We have to let it take over," Tigress said quickly. The Five gaped, eyes wide with shock and horror.

"What?!" they cried.

"It wasn't trying to attack us," Tigress explained. "It was trying to _save_ us...I think if he does this, then Po will return to normal..."

"But Tigress, it's almost sundown! He'll never make it in time!" Crane objected.

Before she could respond, an ear-splitting roar was heard from outside, and they could see the silhouette of the dragon arriving in the Valley of Peace.

If Tigress hadn't told them that the dragon was trying to save the world, that it hadn't meant them any harm the past two days, they would have thought that it was the source of the shaking that suddenly slammed the Jade Palace.


	15. Chapter 15

"Is everyone okay?" Shifu asked dizzily once the shaking had stopped. As far as he knew, the pandas were safe; Li and Mr. Ping had made sure of that by getting them to shelter. He and the Five were still by the empty Moon Pool, and the dragon was staring up at the red clouds that had formed over the Valley. It was standing protectively in front of the group, growling at the mysterious and threatening spectacle before them. The Five nodded at Shifu's question, in shock but otherwise unharmed. The news that the world was ending was finally sinking in, and though they tried their best not to show it, Shifu could tell that they were inwardly panicking. Who wouldn't panic at a time like this?

But just as soon as it had started, the shaking had stopped. Tigress could see that the dragon was able to stop it by using Po's new ability. The Dragon Scroll had said that Chinese dragons had the ability to control changes in the weather, and the dragon was using it to counter the crumbling universe, attempting to make the world stable again. It all made sense at last...

"We understand now," Tigress said to the dragon standing in front of her. It turned its eyes to her and a chill ran down her spine when she was met with the color black, a sign that Po was not currently in control. It made no move to attack, just as she had begun to suspect. It was here for one thing and one thing only.

Their master stared wide-eyed at the dragon as though he had seen it for the first time again. He stared at its dark eyes, searching for someone who wasn't there. She looked on with a sad smile.

"Po is still there," she reassured Shifu. "He's been struggling to stay in control—that's what happened with the Jade Palace wall. But we have to let the dragon do its job." Thunder rumbled as if in response to her words, and lightning flashed in the distance.

Shifu turned his questioning gaze towards her, but then he nodded in understanding.

The dragon suddenly growled and began to shake, much like when Po had started to shake by the fire. Tigress could see its eyes flickering back and forth between black and green, and for the first time, she felt horrified that Po was trying to fight against it.

"Stop, stop!" she yelled, raising her hands up as if to try and stop his fighting. Her cries were unsuccessful as Po continued struggling, shaking his head to try and get rid of the dragon. He felt like he was being controlled again just like when Kai had taken control of his body by using his mind, soon after shooting an arrow directly into his chest. He was done trying to find peace—he'd hurt Tigress again and now the Jade Palace was almost destroyed twice. He had to put a stop to it!

"The world is _ending!"_ Tigress screamed higher. It sounded silly almost, but she kept her composure. The world was literally ending and if Po wasn't able to allow the dragon to do its job, then _—_ as much as the thought absolutely horrified her—everyone was going to die and life as they knew it would end.

Her choice of words seemed to do the trick and Po stopped at last, just as quickly as Tigress had screamed for him to stop struggling. He stood still, his breathing slightly labored and his eyes finally a bright green once again. He could see Tigress and a wave of relief washed over him that she was alright; the last time he'd seen her, he had rammed his whole body into hers just like he had done to Master Oogway. His gaze turned upward towards the sky, and he could see that the clouds were...red? And now Tigress was telling him to stop fighting the thing that they had been trying to get rid of? What the heck was going on?!

"When Master Oogway came to see us," Tigress explained, reminding him of the time when the tortoise had visited the Mortal Realm. Po hadn't been there himself, but Tigress had told him about what happened, and that Oogway had visited to let them know that he was alright after his battle with Kai in the Spirit Realm. "He said that you became one with your dragon counterpart," she continued slowly but surely. "That's what you need to do now, or life as we know it will end."

Po blinked, shocked at her words. This entire time, they had been trying to fight against the monster inside of him, trying to get him back to normal—back to being a panda. But the answer had been right in front of them—the dragon wasn't a monster at all. He needed to fully transform and let the dragon completely take over, or else the world was going to end. The river, the new red clouds...pushing Tigress out of the way of the lightning strike. Attacking her and Oogway in the Spirit Realm because the dragon had been forced away from the Mortal Realm that needed to be saved.

He finally understood. He needed to _accept_ it, not fight it.

He glanced up at the sky again. The red clouds were getting worse and lightning was striking closer together. With each strike, he could feel his Chi twist and turn as though he were connected to the universe itself. His eyes widened as Shifu's words came back to him from the time he had first opened the Dragon Scroll.

 _Legend says you will be able to hear a butterfly's wingbeat, see light in the deepest cave. You will feel the universe in motion around you._

The itchy feeling suddenly returned, and Po knew then what he had to do. He turned back to Tigress and the Furious Five and they nodded in understanding.

"Promise you'll come back," she whispered softly, laying her eyes on his. Yellow met green and she stared long and hard, memorizing every detail.

Po knew that he couldn't promise such a thing. He was about to go and save the entire universe—chances were low that he was going to come back alive or, if he was extremely lucky, alive but very bruised and battered depending on how much Chi he would have to use. He could feel it in his gut—his Chi was the answer. He had to embrace his powers for what they were.

Nevertheless, he nodded. _I promise._

He had to promise not just Tigress, but his family that he was going to be okay. He had to give himself something to fight for, and a promise was going to do just that.

He nuzzled Tigress one last time before allowing the dragon to fully consume him.

Tigress watched as Po relaxed completely for the first time since he had turned back into a dragon. He didn't struggle. He didn't put up a fight. He smiled and closed his eyes.

When they opened, black met her gaze and the real dragon stared back at her for a moment, leaving her feeling incredibly humbled as she realized that Po had become the true Dragon Warrior. Monkey gave her a gentle nudge and handed her the staff; she'd almost forgotten that he still had it. She raised the staff so that the dragon could take it and lowered herself into a bow, Shifu and the Five following her actions.

The dragon gently removed the staff from her hands, soon after taking off into the red sky.

"Let's get to shelter with the others," Shifu told the Five. He was amazed that just a few hours ago, the Valley of Peace had been going through a major drought with no water in sight, but now it looked as if there was going to be a hurricane.

Tigress continued staring out at the Valley of Peace, wind blowing harder and lightning flashing brighter. She knew that if Po did this, chances were high that he would never be able to get back to normal.

The sun was being blocked by the clouds, but she didn't need to see the sun to know that time was running out.


	16. Chapter 16

There wasn't anywhere that was safe during the end of the world. They couldn't even go underground and hope that everything would be fine and dandy above eventually. So Shifu had decided that everyone would stay in the Jade Palace where it was at least a little bit safe with the walls around them for protection against the elements that were going haywire outside. The palace was high enough above ground that any possible waves down below wouldn't be able to reach them.

The pandas were confused and frightened at the sudden change in weather. It had been so hot and now it were as if the elements were battling against each other in a frenzied fury.

"Where's Po?" Bao asked frantically when he couldn't find the panda amidst the group that had just entered. The golden dragon action figure was clasped tightly in his paws, and Tigress couldn't help but stare. She shook her head lightly, attention drawing back to Bao; she realized that he hadn't seen Po since the panda had turned back into a dragon. He had no idea about anything that had happened over the last two days, that Po was about to go and save the entire world. "Is he still out there? We can't lock everything up without him!"

Tigress knelt down to the cub's level. She could lie again, like she had lied to Po. She could say that everything was going to be okay and that the storm would end soon if Po was successful in piecing the world back together. But she couldn't bring herself to lie to little Bao. Though when she tried to speak, words failed her. Telling the truth was just as bad as lying. How could you tell a child that the world might be ending?

 _Might._ It was destiny that the world would end, but it was also destiny that someone was going to stop it.

The Dragon Warrior.

She trusted Po with her life and those closest to her, and the lives of every living being on the dying planet.

So she told Bao the truth.

"He promised he would be back," she reassured him softly. She trusted that he would keep that promise. Bao blinked, tears springing from his big and round eyes. He was scared just like everyone else, just like her. She pulled him close, wrapping him in a hug as gently as she could. It was in that moment she realized that Bao knew something was wrong, and that it was something big. As much as they wanted to, they couldn't keep anything from anyone.

The villagers of the Valley of Peace had been warned to stay indoors at all costs during the storm, though Shifu and Po's dads had tried to fit everyone that they could inside the palace. It was a mix of pandas, birds, bunnies as well as sheep. They had wanted to know what was going on, but like Tigress, words had failed Shifu. Li and Mr. Ping were the only ones besides the Five that were in the know, and they had told the community with heavy hearts that it was just a bad storm and would pass eventually. Tigress had a feeling that like Bao, they knew something was wrong anyway, and it was more than just a bad storm.

No one wanted to say anything for fear of getting into trouble, or making the little ones afraid, or just the fact that saying it out loud would only make reality set in quicker.

Was this actually happening? What was happening to the rest of the world? If the Valley of Peace looked as bad as it did now outside, then they didn't want to know what was going on in other parts of the universe. It was like a nightmare that just wouldn't stop no matter how hard they tried to wake themselves up...

Lei Lei came up to Bao and Tigress, her own action figure in hand.

"Stripey baby," she babbled in worry at the strong wind noises coming from outside. "Bad storm..."

"Are you scared, too?" Bao whispered. She nodded and he took her hand comfortingly in his. Tigress's heart dropped at the sight and she wished that she could do something more to help the two, but all they could do was wait. She stared around her at friends and family who were huddled together in close-knit groups, never wanting to let the other go as they waited for the storm to be over.

At least they were together. The storm would be over soon; she was sure of it. But what if...

Tigress squeezed her eyes shut at the horrible possibility. She couldn't think like that! Po was going to save the world. He _had_ to. But even if he was successful, the third day was almost up. He had become one with his dragon counterpart like the universe wanted. He would never get back to normal, would he? But she couldn't bring herself to think like that, either. He couldn't be stuck as a dragon. He might be the Dragon Warrior, but he was still a panda at heart; a panda was what he had always been from the moment of birth. Master Oogway wouldn't be so cruel as to leave him in his dragon body, would he?

After this was all over, Tigress swore to herself that she would help Po find a way to change back if it was the last thing she did. The Dragon Warrior's mission would be complete and the real dragon would finally be at rest, waiting for another thousand years until the universe needed him again.

A jolt was suddenly felt and the villagers and pandas gasped in fright, hanging on close to one another. Some closed their eyes, waiting for the bitter end. Another jolt was felt, causing them to jump. Lanterns that created the only light they had went out and Tigress closed her own eyes amid the darkness, fearing the worst and feeling sick to her stomach.

This was it, this was the end. The end of _everything_ and there was nothing they could do. She would never see Shifu again, never see the Five or Bao and Lei Lei. She would never see Po again. Perhaps in the Spirit Realm, but what if that was destroyed, too? She gripped the cub close as she could to her and Lei Lei hugged back, letting out a small and fearful cry at the sudden blackness.

An unknown amount of time passed and the howling wind ceased.

Was it over? Was she dead? Tigress couldn't tell from behind her closed eyelids, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to know.

They felt one final jolt, this one much more forceful then the others that caused the Jade Palace to shake and then all was still. They sat for a few moments until they couldn't contain their curiosity any longer, Shifu gesturing for the palace doors to be opened.

Sunlight streamed into the palace and they were almost disappointed that the drought had returned to torment them. But Shifu noticed that it wasn't as burning hot as it had been before. It felt almost...nice. It finally felt like normal sunny weather, a gentle breeze blowing past to ruffle his fur.

Looking out at the Valley of Peace, they saw that it seemed as if there had never been a terrible storm only moments ago at all. There was no damage in sight; not even a fallen tree. Even the forest that had been wrecked when Po first transformed was back to normal, as well as the wall that had been torn with his claws.

"Did you feel that?" Bao suddenly asked, glancing down quickly at his paw. "I felt a drop!"

"What?" Shifu questioned, following the cub's excited gaze towards the sky. The red clouds were gone and normal, gray storm ones had been put in their place, blocking out the last remains of the setting sun.

Pandas and villagers alike cheered all at once when lightning flashed and thunder cracked, rain pouring soon after down from above.

The Five watched, amused, as Bao and Lei Lei splashed each other playfully in puddles that scattered the ground. While at the Panda Village, they'd had no idea that a drought had even been occurring in China and wished that they could have done something to help, guilty that they'd had their fair share of water with the river. But that didn't matter; not anymore.

The drought was over. They finally released a breath that they hadn't realized they had been holding. They were safe and all was well! Relief poured over them like the rain and they broke out into joyous laughter.

Tigress tried to feel happy. The world had been saved. Life could go on.

But she couldn't feel anything amidst the joy that they were still alive, that she was alive in this historical moment when she'd thought life to be no more. She stared almost listlessly at Bao's dragon figure that the cub had dropped into a puddle by accident.

Glancing at Li and Mr. Ping in the downpour, she could tell that the two fathers were thinking the same thing.

Where was Po?


	17. Chapter 17

_Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled as the Dragon Warrior soared frantically through the Valley of Peace, his staff held firmly in his jaws. Po wasn't in control, but the panda was completely at rest, trusting that he would be able to save a dying world. Gold mixed with red as he pushed himself to fly faster. He had a deadline to meet, or else the entire universe was going to pay._

 _His staff grew brighter when a flash of lightning struck and it radiated against the intense electricity, quivering under the stress of so much power._

 _He needed to collect all of it. Every single strike._

 _His staff let out a jolt of energy that had been converted into Chi through the lightning, sending it out quickly across every edge of the universe._

 _The panda knew that something was wrong when the staff refused to let out another jolt of energy that would release the lightning-turned-Chi throughout the world. He could feel it, and he began to struggle for control again. The dragon fought against him, pleading with him not to do it. If Po did this, then there would be a dire consequence that he would have to face._

 _But if he didn't, the other consequence was much more disastrous._

 _And the panda knew it. He didn't have a choice. So the real Dragon Warrior surrendered, leaving him to face the End alone and trusting that he would be able to pull through._

 _Po was in control now, looking out over the world that was going to break any second._

 _"It's gonna take a lot more than the end of the world to keep us apart," he remembered his dad saying._

 _Po had never imagined that he would actually be saving the world for real one day. He knew that it would certainly be enough to keep the two of them apart forever._

 _He never should have made that promise to Tigress. He wished that he could take it back. He wished that he could see his fathers one last time, and Shifu and the Furious Five. He wished that the world would never end. But wishing wasn't going to solve anything. He had to do this._

 _Glancing down at his staff once more, he could see that it was still refusing to cooperate. It just couldn't handle any more energy. The lightning was no longer connecting; it was simply glowing a bright gold._

 _Po took a deep breath, readying himself for what he was about to do. He allowed his own energy inside to build up and up, waiting for the right moment when it was ready to burst._

 _He exhaled then, golden Chi shooting outwards as though he were breathing fire._

 _It felt like he was trying to swim through the ocean as the last of his energy left him. But he could see his Chi already fixing what had been damaged by the wild and out of control weather._

 _With one last burst of his remaining power, he released all of his fears and commanded the skies to let loose._

 _He was amazed that it actually started to rain. He could feel life rejoicing soon after, and he couldn't help but smile. His work was done._

 _And then...then?_

 _Everything went black._

xxxx

"You've met with a terrible fate, haven't you?"

Po knew that voice anywhere. He could see Master Oogway through all of the gold that surrounded the Spirit Realm. The tortoise floated towards him, a forlorn kind of smile stretched sadly across his face.

 _Master Oogway...your staff! It's all fixed!_ Po exclaimed in his mind. He knew that like Tigress had before when she first came to the Spirit Realm, Master Oogway would be able to hear him speak.

"Indeed...and I thank you, Po," Master Oogway replied gratefully as he held the staff tenderly in his hands.

 _What for?_ Po asked, face wrinkling in confusion. _I was the one who destroyed it...and I hurt you. I'm so sorry!_

"Why, you were the one who fixed it!" Oogway responded gleefully, his smile turning more cheerful. "And no need to worry. I wasn't harmed. A bit sore, of course, but nothing to cause a fuss over." His smile widened a bit further.

Po suddenly realized what Oogway had just said. Terrible fate?

 _Being here...that means I'm dead, aren't I?_ Po asked sadly. Something was wrong—he was sure of it, and he knew exactly what the problem was. He had used too much Chi, and now he was back in the Spirit Realm once again. He was still a dragon, presumably because he had been a dragon in his last moments. He was never going to be a panda again.

He'd let his friends down. He'd let his family down. He'd let the entire _world_ down.

 _I messed up so bad..._ Po said sorrowfully in his mind, regret flowing through him like no tomorrow. There wasn't ever going to be a tomorrow again thanks to him. The universe had completely fallen apart. But then again...if everyone was dead, where were they? Shouldn't they all be here in the Spirit Realm with him?

"No," Master Oogway confirmed, his voice bright. "You fixed the entire universe, Po, and because of that, both worlds have the wonderful opportunity to live on."

Po smiled, happy to hear the news. So he'd done it. He'd actually saved the universe! Relief welled up inside him as he realized that everyone was finally safe. There would be no more wacky weather, no more rivers rising. No more red clouds and no more worrying that his dragon side was going to hurt anyone, though that had never been its intention in the first place. At least not for another thousand years.

But another horrible realization suddenly struck him. If the universe had been saved and his mission was complete, then why was he still a dragon? Was it really because he had been brought here as such? That he had perished as a dragon? How was he going to get back to normal? Was he stuck like this forever?

"You can give it up," Master Oogway said, interrupting his train of thought.

 _Give up...?_ Po questioned warily. It wasn't like Oogway to tell someone to give up.

"Being the Dragon Warrior," Oogway continued. "Surrender your title and you will return to your original form."

Po gaped. So if he gave up his title, he would change back? He would become a panda again? The thought alone was tempting enough. He didn't exactly _want_ to be a dragon forever. He _wanted_ to go back to being a panda, and badly. But he couldn't give up being the Dragon Warrior! It was destiny that the universe had chosen him that fateful day. If he gave up his title, who would take his place? What would happen to the universe if he simply quit?

 _You mean...if I choose to stay as the Dragon Warrior, I'll never get back to normal?_

"There is no 'normal,'" Oogway replied.

That was enough of an answer than if he had remained silent.

He was giving him a choice, when in reality Po knew that he didn't have a choice at all.

Still, Po closed his eyes and thought. Once he made his choice, there was no going back. He thought long and hard until his head hurt from all of the pressure and then...he came to his own conclusion.

"Is this your final decision?" Master Oogway asked when Po had finally managed to make up his mind. It was a difficult decision, but it was one that he had to make. There was no other choice.

 _Yes._


	18. Chapter 18

He wasn't coming back, was he? Even though he had promised her that he would be back, Tigress knew that he wasn't ever going to be back again. She continued to look out over the restored Valley of Peace, searching high and low for any signs of a panda or a dragon, but there was none.

In all her grief, she hardly noticed that the cheering pandas and villagers had fallen silent, that the rain had stopped and there was a bright and colorful rainbow that stretched nearly all the way across the Valley.

She was vaguely aware of Shifu's voice in the background. "Tigress..." he said slowly, eyes wide. But Tigress hardly even noticed Crane's beak dropping in utter surprise.

Anger replaced her grief. _Why, Po?_ she thought mournfully. _Why did you have to go and save the world by yourself? You promised. You promised you would come back, and you're not here._

"Tigress...behind you," Shifu tried again. Still, Tigress ignored her master, closing her eyes in a tight squeeze. She wished that she had never met that stupid panda, then his absence wouldn't be hurting her as much as it did now. When had she become so weak?

 _It's all his fault,_ Tigress's mind screamed. _It's all Po's fault._

It wasn't until she was jostled by a strong bump from behind her that she finally turned around, coming face-to-face with...

"Po! You're back!" she cried in relief, instantly wrapping her arms around his neck in a hug. He rumbled joyfully at their reunion, happy to be back at the Jade Palace.

A certain little panda cub instantly ran around in circles in excitement. "Po's back! Po's back!" Bao cried happily, grabbing Lei Lei with a paw to swing her around.

He did it. He'd kept his promise.

But there was only one problem.

"I _told_ you he turned into a dragon," Bao told a small bunny that had participated in their show and tell class. The bunny stared wide-eyed at the reptile, mouth agape in fear and wonder.

Releasing herself from their hug, Tigress looked up at his face to find that...Bao was right. Po was still a dragon.

 _No..._ she thought frantically. He'd saved the world. Shouldn't the dragon be at peace now? Why hadn't he changed back into a panda?

"I...I don't understand," Tigress said in confusion, trying her best to figure out why this was. But she came to her own resolve; she'd made herself promise that she would help Po find a way to change back into a panda no matter what happened, no matter how long it would take to find a 'cure.' She would even go back to the Spirit Realm with him if that was what they needed to do. "We'll all help you, just like we've been doing," she reassured the dragon calmly.

If he was permanently stuck like this, then he himself was being pretty calm about it, as well; Tigress didn't know what she would do if she were in his place.

Much to their shock, Po shook his head. He blinked and glanced up at the sky, and then back down at the Five. He used a claw and pointed to his chest.

 _I chose this,_ he thought, hoping that they would understand.

Tigress frowned, following his gestures and piecing them together the best that she could. "You...you chose to be like this?"

Po nodded and they fell silent, hardly believing their ears.

 _There was no other way,_ Po tried to tell her, a mixture of emotions bubbling inside. Master Oogway had made sure that he understood the repercussions of whatever decision that he chose. If he had chosen to give up his title, his powers would have been stripped from him. He would no longer have been able to fly or control the weather. His Chi would have been intact, of course, but that was absolutely necessary in the fact that he wouldn't survive without it.

If he chose to stay as the Dragon Warrior like he had, Master Oogway was firm but gentle in telling him that there would be no way for him to change back into a panda. His dragon spirit was attached too strongly to his soul, and the dangers of forcing him to change back with his Dragon Warrior title still in place were far too great to entertain than if he had simply given up his title and allowed it to leave on its own.

There was fear that he would be rejected because he would no longer be a panda. He'd felt his panda spirit leave him the moment that he had returned to the Mortal Realm after his decision was made; he was trapped in his dragon body now with absolutely no way to change back.

But then again, he wasn't trapped. He had made the decision himself that he _needed_ to go on being the Dragon Warrior. He couldn't quit just like that, not after all these years and all his training. He'd said it to Kai in the Spirit Realm when he had finally discovered who he really was.

 _I am the Dragon Warrior._

He could never give that up, and he hoped with all his might that his friends and family would understand. He lowered his gaze, blinking back tears as they threatened to break loose.

What if he had just made a horrible mistake? He could hardly fit inside the Jade Palace in this form. He'd managed to squeeze through the halls during his fight with Kai, but just barely. He would never see the inside of his room at the palace again, or even be able to fit inside his room at the noodle shop. He wouldn't be able to communicate directly with anyone again. Maybe he should have thought this through more clearly...but he didn't regret it. He _wouldn't_ regret it.

Though none of it really mattered because he wouldn't even be able to regret anything for awhile, and he knew that the time was coming soon. The time that Oogway had also warned him of before he'd made his decision final.

 _I am the Dragon Warrior,_ he told himself, the words that he'd said to Kai repeating themselves over and over in his mind, blinking again to try and ward off the oncoming tiredness. The consequence that Master Oogway had warned him of was starting. It was actually happening, and there was no way that he could stop it. But he had to stay awake for as long as he possibly could.

"Oh, Po..." Mr. Ping approached his son, Li following close behind. "Panda, dragon...we love you no matter what," he assured him, wiping a wing gently across Po's face. A giant tear drop slid down his cheek, nearly flattening the poor goose.

"You can say that again," Li confirmed, joining in on the group hug.

 _I'm sorry, dads._ Po nuzzled them both, never wanting the moment to end. But he couldn't keep up the hug for long, weakness starting to creep into his sore muscles. He blinked rapidly, letting out a large and loud yawn.

"I think he needs a nap," Bao said, curiously tilting his head to the side. How was Po going to fit inside the palace now?

"After all he went through, I would imagine so," Shifu said with a soft smile. Po certainly deserved a rest after all he had been through the past few days. Po brightened a little at his words, lowering his head to give Shifu a few licks with his big tongue.

Shifu recoiled in disgust and the villagers around them laughed in amusement at the slobber that ran down Shifu's robe.

"Ugh...that's probably not going to wash out," Shifu muttered, wiping slimy spit from his fur. Po chortled in quiet laughter, but he was unable to stop another yawn from forming.

He'd been tired before. He'd been absolutely wiped after training, especially with Tigress or Shifu. He'd been doubly wiped after climbing up the Jade Palace steps.

He'd expected to be tired after saving the entire universe, but not _this_ tired.

It wasn't like when he had trapped Kai in his personal prison...this was different. He'd just saved an entire universe, and he was going to have to do it again. It was part of his job as the Dragon Warrior that he had accepted before making his final decision. Fighting it was useless...he just wanted to sleep...

Tigress let out a heavy sigh. Just like Po had accepted his fate, they had to accept his, as well. She should have known that this was coming.

"His work is done. He needs to go into hibernation."

"Hibernation?!" Mr. Ping cried. Since when did pandas hibernate? Except he wasn't exactly a panda anymore...

"How long? A month?" Li asked, pained and alarmed at the news. His heart throbbed. He couldn't bear to be away from Po again!

Tigress glanced downward.

"...A year?" Mr. Ping gasped in horror. He couldn't imagine being separated from his son for that long like Li had the unfortunate opportunity to experience. But a year was nothing compared to what Li had to endure when Shen had ripped him away.

Tigress tried holding herself together, but it was an extremely difficult task, especially with what she was about to reveal.

"More like...a thousand years."

Po had wondered if he was immortal now that he was a Spirit Warrior like Kai.

Master Oogway had finally given him his answer.


	19. Chapter 19

_Guess what? We're nearing the end! There is only one more chapter after this! Please don't hurt me *runs and hides*_

xxxx

 _"More like...a thousand years."_

 _Mr. Ping nearly fainted right then and there._

 _Li looked as if he were about to burst into tears, his heart cracking in two._

 _"But that means...we'll never see him again."_

xxxx

After much thinking and deliberation, the Five and Po, including Shifu and his dads, had decided to lead the tired Dragon Warrior to the Dragon Grotto.

Not so much because of the name, but it was nice and cool there with plenty of fresh water that would never run out should Po wake up in need of a drink. It was one of Shifu's favorite places to meditate, but he was gladly willing to give it up to a dragon in need.

Po could barely make it up the mountain to the grotto. His eyes were droopy and he had to stop them from just sliding shut. His steps were slow and his tail dragged across the mountain floor as they traveled upwards. It was so strange...it felt like just yesterday, he had been a panda and could spring right up to greet his master for training. Po had wanted to carry the others up, but they had declined; they knew that he was just too tired to carry even the slightest of weight on his back.

They were completely silent on the way up, trapped in a hushed kind of quiet ever since Tigress had revealed that Po would have to go to sleep for a thousand years. The thought alone was terrifying, and they wondered how Po could have even been able to make such a decision on his own.

They entered the cave where Shifu had first started to teach Po inner peace. A drop of water had fallen from the statue of a dragon and Shifu demonstrated how to control the drop as it gracefully slid down and around his body. As they stared around the cavern, Shifu noticed that the dragon statue was gone.

 _How...?_ he wondered in slight panic. It was impossible for someone to steal a statue. Had Po's Chi dissolved it as it ran its course through the universe? Had Master Oogway taken it away knowing that Po was going to take its place? Even the pool of water was gone, replaced by a cozy island that was the perfect size for Po. Whatever the reason, the statue was gone now and ready to be occupied by a living, breathing dragon.

Po moved slowly towards the center of the dark cave. In the back of his mind, he pieced together more of Shifu's legend of the Dragon Warrior. _See light in the deepest cave..._

It wasn't just a legend anymore. It was all coming to life right before Po's eyes, and he was experiencing the events first-hand.

He circled a few times until he found a comfortable enough position on the island, laying on the ground to rest his head in between his front legs.

The group stared sadly as Po's eyes continued to droop; they were getting worse as though he were under some kind of spell, but they could tell that he was forcing himself to stay awake for as long as he could.

Li and Mr. Ping smiled softly, finally ready to say their goodbyes, though the truth was they were far from ready.

"We'll never forget you, and I know you won't forget us," Li said gently. "You said that I never had to worry about losing you again...and I don't." He smiled fondly once more at his son. Po looked to be about half asleep already, yet Li and the others knew that he was listening to the best of his ability.

Mr. Ping approached next. He carried a certain radish basket in his arms—the basket that Po's mother had left him in as a cub. Walking slowly, he placed the basket next to Po.

"I thought you might want this, too...for nostalgia's sake," Li said as he placed a small panda toy inside the basket.

"It will be different when you wake up...very different," Mr. Ping continued the best that he could. Tears were on the brink of escaping. "But just promise me that you won't regret the decision that you made. I know it must have been very hard for you...I love you so much, son."

Po nodded slowly and Mr. Ping wrapped his wings tightly around his neck. After a few moments Li joined in, as well. Then they knew that it was time to let go. Po squirmed when they left the cave as if to try to get up and follow them, but he couldn't. He couldn't even attempt to stand up in the state that he was in.

Lei Lei waddled up when they were finished and placed her Tigress figure next to the doll inside the basket. "Stripey baby yours," she said quietly. She couldn't find the right words, but she was grateful that Po had let her borrow his most prized figure all this time.

Bao glanced down at his dragon action figure. He couldn't understand why everyone was so sad. Po was just taking a short nap...right?

"Please wake up soon so we can play," he said, wrapping his tiny arms around the dragon's neck the best that he could manage. He let go and made his way outside to stay with Li and Mr. Ping.

Shifu closed his eyes. He thought he was ready. He was anything _but_ ready. He never imagined that it would be this hard...

"You helped me find inner peace and changed my life for the better. I won't ever be able to repay you...it was an honor to be your master and watch you grow after all these years. Just think...this is the final phase of your training—to sit in a cave like Master Oogway for the next few years."

It wasn't really just a few years, but he knew that and Po knew it, too. The dragon stretched his head forward and pushed it lightly against Shifu's hand. His master blanched, stunned by the action. But he lowered head in a bow. Taking out Po's staff, he allowed the dragon to place it in between his legs where it would be safe.

The Furious Five were ready to say their own goodbyes, though like the others, none of them were truly ready.

"I would leave you some of my cookies that I _know_ you've been sneaking out of the cabinet all this time, but I don't think they'd last for...that long," Monkey said regretfully. Po blinked in surprise. He _knew_ all this time...and never said anything? He let him have his cookies? "You're one of my best friends, Po. We named the Jombies together..."

"Nah, I still think he's a useless reptile," Mantis said in a teasing and playful manner. "I'm not good at all this mushy stuff. I just want you to know that even if I didn't look like it, I never minded you comparing me to your action figure sizes. Or when you said I looked the same even as a Jombie. Yes, I somehow remember that..." It was unusual to remember anything while trapped as a Jombie. Po smiled in response and Mantis returned the gesture, hopping off of Crane's hat so the bird could say his goodbyes.

"I'll miss you, Po," he said meekly. "I'm sorry for all the things we said...and _did_ to you before we really got to know you. I take it all back. And no matter what you say, you were a pretty good teacher." Po snorted at his comment. While he'd gotten over his fear of teaching at last, he would never forget the day when he first started. It had gone so horribly.

Viper nodded in agreement. "I hope you'll feel a Kung Fu chill riding up your spine every now and then. You never know, it might be me...goodbye, Po..."

Tigress watched as Shifu and the Five made their leave. They glanced back at her, knowing that it was her turn. No, no, no...it was _her_ turn. She almost wanted to turn around and run. Run away from the sorrow and grief that had latched onto her very being and was refusing to let go. How would she _ever_ be able to let go? But running away from her problems wasn't the answer...

"I won't...see you again..." she began, tears prickling at the corners of her eyes as she held onto him with every ounce of strength that she possessed. She could feel his heartbeat slowing, a sign that he was ready to fall asleep for a long period of time.

 _I know...but I need you to stay strong. Don't let life pass you by just because I'm not there...please...I had to do this, Tigress...please...live for me...I kept my promise. Now you keep yours._

It was like his thoughts had echoed off the mountain walls.

He wasn't really doing this because he wanted to keep his title and powers, though that was part of the reason.

He had to do it because if he didn't, then he would be condemning another poor soul to the same fate. He was doing this in case the universe was never able to find another Dragon Warrior. If that was truly the case, then it could indeed be very disastrous. He was protecting everyone—the entire _world_ —by choosing to stay as the Dragon Warrior for fear that if he didn't, the universe would fall into chaos once again.

Realization that he could be so selfless hit her like a tidal wave, causing her to shiver slightly. How _could_ he be so selfless? Why couldn't he just think of himself for once? Didn't he know how many people he was hurting? Especially her? It was going to be so _quiet_ and _different_ without him...

"I just want you to know that on the boat that night on our way to Gongmen City, when you said I was so hardcore I couldn't feel anything...I meant to say that I _can_ feel. Not physically, at least, but emotionally. I _felt_ you die when Kai had your Chi, and that was the worst night of my life. You might not know this, but you taught me so much more than simple Kung Fu. It will hurt without you, but I know that you'll always be there when we need you. You're my friend, Po. My best friend and I'll miss you."

Po let out a quiet rumble. It was so quiet that she almost didn't hear it, but she was able to hear it all the same. He moved slowly, nearly half asleep already, to put his head into the radish basket as best as he could get it to fit and pulled out the panda toy that Li had placed inside.

"I can't take this," Tigress said, her eyes widening in surprise. But Po insisted, blocking her from putting it back by using his tail. A second realization overcame her. He was giving her his childhood toy—a panda. He was giving her something to remember him by. Gratefulness washed over her and she found herself at a loss for words. He wanted her to know that he had never needed her to help him get back to normal because he _was_ normal—he was the Dragon Warrior, and this was who he truly was no matter what form he chose.

She was about to get up from her hold on him and turn around when a voice suddenly popped into her mind, and it was a voice that she knew. A voice that she hadn't heard in days, yet it felt like a thousand years already. A voice that she was never going to hear again.

It was Po.

 _I...I love...you...Tigress..._ his words faded into the back of her mind, and it took everything she had not to break down right there and sob her heart out.

But she didn't. She remained strong, for herself and especially for Po. She didn't want his last moments awake to be seeing her in so much distress.

So she smiled at her reflection in those bright, green eyes of his, holding onto the panda toy.

Eyelids slid shut as if in slow motion. Soon the only thing that Tigress could hear was the slow in and out breathing of a sleeping dragon.

The Dragon Warrior was finally at rest, and he wouldn't wake for another thousand years until the universe needed him to restore peace and balance once again.

Before Tigress could completely walk out of the cave, she turned back around to say her final words to her best friend.

"I love you too, Po."


	20. Epilogue

_Happy Kung Fu Panda 2 day! It's the fifth anniversary of when the movie first came out in theaters! Wow, has it really been that long already? I feel old! xD Anyway, I figured that today would be the perfect day to post this chapter, or rather, the epilogue of The Fire Within! I had a really great time writing, and I thank everyone who has reviewed, followed, faved or simply read this story! It's been awesome and in case you were wondering, I DO have yet another story in mind that would make this series into a TRILOGY, but it's still in the planning stage so it might be awhile before that's posted. Keep an eye out!_

 _Thank you for sticking with me all this time, guys! I might not respond to all of your reviews, but I do read each and every single one as they come in, and I save and read them often! I just never know what to say in response besides "thank you," lol! So thank you for all of your continuous support, everyone! I really appreciate it! *hugs you all* Oh, and one last thing! I finally finished the music playlist that I've been working on all this time! Since I can't post links here, I added one to the playlist in my fanfiction profile._

 _Enjoy!_

xxxx

 _"Legend tells of a legendary warrior whose kung fu skills were the stuff of legend...he was first a panda, but then transformed into a dragon. He gave up everything in order to protect the universe and all of time..."_

Two cubs panted heavily on their way up the mountain. No one had been to the Dragon Grotto in decades, and they wanted to be the first to make it to the cave now that a thousand years had passed just like in the story that they had heard over and over.

Of course, they knew that it was just a story. It wasn't _real._ It had been passed down from generation to generation, and everyone who had actually believed—those who had claimed that they were actually there—were gone by now, with no proof to back it up. But they were determined to find out if a dragon had been truly resting in the cave for a thousand years like the legend said.

"Are you coming or not, Chao?" a small, black and white panda cub asked his orange and white tiger friend who had fallen very behind.

Chao gasped for breath, shaking his head wildly. "Maybe I should just wait down here, Lotus..."

"Aw, you're just a big scaredy-cat," Lotus teased. "You don't really _believe_ in that stuff, do you? The end of the world? _Dragons?_ They don't exist! It was probably just a story that some crazy person made up."

"A thousand years have passed, and that's when he's supposed to wake up!" Chao objected, bending over to try and get his breath back. "My great-great-great-great-something grandma was a part of the Furious Five and was _friends_ with him! This toy actually used to be his!" The tiger pulled out a torn and dirty panda toy from the pack around his waist.

Lotus scoffed, waving a hand at his friend. "That old thing? It's a panda, not a dragon. You can't just change from a panda into a dragon. You _also_ can't live to be a thousand years old and I don't see any weird red clouds, either." In fact, the weather was nice today. Maybe a few clouds here and there, but it didn't look anything like the end of the world. The world just _couldn't_ end. That was impossible!

"But that's what the story said," Chao protested. "My mom tells it to me all the time."

"Ah, you'll believe anything anyone tells you," Lotus laughed. Chao frowned as he finally caught up. They had finally reached the cave!

Slowly, trying their best not to make any sounds, they entered the Dragon Grotto cave. Well, only one entered. Chao stayed behind, refusing to go any further.

"But we're not supposed to go in there!" he cried in a quiet whisper for fear that whatever might be inside would hear them. If there _was_ anything inside.

Lotus let out a frustrated sigh. "Don't you want to find out if it really _is_ true?" he prodded. "We can't tell if anything's inside from out here!"

Chao nodded nervously. Of course he did. But this was trespassing and they could get into serious trouble!

"Then come on!" Lotus pushed, beginning to enter the cave. Chao squeaked at the thought of being left alone outside, rushing to catch up to his panda friend.

They walked silently through the cave, Chao holding his panda toy tightly to his chest for comfort. Who knew what they would find in here? It was one of the oldest caves in the Valley of Peace!

But as they entered deeper with nothing but a lantern to light the way that Lotus had brought along, what they didn't expect to find was a massive dragon sleeping in the center. The two cubs stood stock-still, hardly believing their eyes that the story had actually been true.

It was actually _real!_

"So it _was_ true," the black and white cub whispered in shock, staring in awe at the huge creature that was resting before them. Its sides fell up and down in a slow kind of manner, its eyes closed. There was an old, worn basket sitting next to it filled with a number of different items, and pictures that had been hung up on the cave walls over the years. He noticed a weird stick-like object in between the dragon's front feet that looked shiny and almost new compared to the other items that scattered the cave.

"Lotus...what are you doing?!" Chao whispered frantically as the panda reached for the staff.

The dragon flinched and Lotus jumped, fearing the worst, but it remained asleep. The little cub grinned and pulled the staff away.

"Cool," he said in excitement, running his paws over the staff. He waved it in the air, pretending that it was a sword.

"Put it back!" Chao screamed in a whisper, his eyes widening when the dragon began to stir. He hugged the old panda toy closer to his striped chest.

"You worry too much," Lotus protested, oblivious to the fact that a giant dragon was starting to wake. "It's sound asleep."

He finally froze, staff still in hand, when bright green eyes snapped open, and the tiger and panda cubs found themselves staring back at the very same dragon from the legend—the dragon that had finally woken after a thousand years.


End file.
